Visiting the Merlion
by Selene13
Summary: COMPLETE Albus, Minerva, Severus and Madam Hooch decided to go for a vacation! With the members of AlbusandMinerva group as co-stars! RR please!
1. I Need A Vacation!

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Chapter 1: I need a vacation!  
  
"Albus!"  
  
"Professor Dumbledore!"  
  
"Headmaster!"  
  
Dumbledore looked up from the papers on his desk to the three people who just banged into his office: Professor Minerva McGonagall, Professor Severus Snape and Madam Madeline Hooch. The three of them marched up to his desk and started to talk at the same time.  
  
"Mr. Longbottom is giving me the headaches-."  
  
"The Weasely twins have painted my broomstick into bright yellow with pink hearts! Not that I hate yellow but-."  
  
"Mr. Crabbe and Goyle are not paying attention in my class and Mr. Malfoy has been wandering around with his brand new broomstick, showing off and disrupting the lessons in my class-.."  
  
Dumbledore held up his hands. "One at the time, please." He said calmly.  
  
"WE NEED A VACATION!" The teachers cried in unison.  
  
"Ah, a vacation. That will be nice." Dumbledore smiled. "I have to agree that I need a vacation too. Fudge has been sending me ten letters a day instead of the usual three and it is getting a little annoying."  
  
The three teachers looked at each other.  
  
"You mean we will all go? Together?" Minerva asked uncertainly.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. The teachers smiled but then he said: "But I afraid that this vacation will not be taken place until summer. I know that summer is still a month away but although we are tired, we must continue teaching."  
  
Madam Hooch groaned. "Oops, sorry."  
  
"Now, where shall we go?" Dumbledore asked, putting his hands together and rested his chin on his fingers.  
  
"Anywhere as long as I can get away from the Gryffindors." Snape said and received a glare from Minerva.  
  
"Anywhere as long as there's no Slytherins." Minerva snapped.  
  
"I don't mind as long as I can get a vacation." Madam Hooch said.  
  
Dumbledore looked at them for a while. "How about somewhere uncommon?"  
  
"Uncommon?" The teachers asked.  
  
"Not USA, not France, not Italy, not Australia, but Asia."  
  
"Asia?"  
  
"Right."  
  
"Which part of Asia?" Madam Hooch asked.  
  
"South-east Asia."  
  
"Where? Malaysia?" Snape asked.  
  
"No. Singapore."  
  
"Singapore? I have never heard of it." Madam Hooch said.  
  
"Oh come on, Mandy, didn't you pay attention in your Care For Magical Creatures lessons? That's where the Merlion from." Minerva said, rolling her eyes. "So that's where we are going in summer?"  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "And no magic is to be use while we are on vacation, I don't want to risk the exposure of our world."  
  
"Whatever, the further away from Potter, the better." Snape said.  
  
***  
  
"Why, Severus, I don't know that you like to wear accessories." Madam Hooch grinned when they arrived at Singapore's Changi International Airport a month later.  
  
"Funny that you didn't notice until now." Snape snapped and tugged on his pendant, which is a sliver snake with green emeralds as eyes.  
  
"Calm down, Severus. Come on, Gate 1 ½ is this way." Dumbledore said, pushing his trolley towards a wall between Arrival Gate 1 and 2. Snape rolled his eyes and followed.  
  
Like Platform 9 ¾, Gate 1 ½ at Changi Airport is invisible to Muggle eye. What witches and wizards have to do is to walk through the wall between Gate 1 and Gate 2.  
  
After they had walked through the wall, Dumbledore grinned and said: "All right, now all we have to do is to get a taxi and..."  
  
"W-wait a sec, Headmaster....(Dumbledore raised his eyebrow at Snape) I mean, Albus. Where is the taxi-stand?"  
  
Silence.  
  
Madam Hooch threw up her hands. "Great, we are struck even before we start our vacation."  
  
"Looks like we have to ask.." Dumbledore started when a Muggle teenage girl with black hair (which she had tied back into a ponytail), glasses, white shirt and blue shorts walked past them. "Maybe she knows. Excuse me, Miss."  
  
The girl turned around. Her dark brown eyes widened and her mouth dropped open when she saw them.  
  
Snape frowned as she stared. "What are you staring at?" He demanded.  
  
"Severus, don't scared her." Minerva scolded, rolling her eyes.  
  
The girl pushed her glasses up. "Sorry, Professor Snape." She said quickly.  
  
Now it's Snape's turn to have his mouth dropped open. "How do you know my name?"  
  
"I know all of you." The girl said slowly. "You are Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Madam Hooch and Professor Snape, right?"  
  
The group looked at each other and nodded.  
  
"Are you a witch?" Madam Hooch asked.  
  
The girl shook her head. "I'm just a Muggle."  
  
"Then how do you know about us?" Snape asked.  
  
"It's not just me, a lot of Muggles know you." She paused. "And your world. But I have no idea that you people really exist...."  
  
"What do you mean?" Minerva asked.  
  
"All right, back to business. ("Phew." The girl mumbled.) Miss, do you know where the taxi-stand is?" Dumbledore asked politely.  
  
"Sure. In fact, I am taking my friends to the taxi stand too. Why don't you follow me?" The girl asked kindly.  
  
"All right, thank you." Dumbledore said and started to follow the girl.  
  
"Can we trust that Muggle?" Snape asked as he swung his bag over his shoulder and used his hand as a hook.  
  
"It is the only way I guess." Minerva said and the rest of the group followed Dumbledore and the girl.  
  
The girl walked towards a group of girls and called: "Hey girls!"  
  
The girls turned around and their expressions were the same as the girl's when she first saw Dumbledore and the others.  
  
"Oh my God." A girl with curly auburn hair and blue eyes managed to say.  
  
"Let me introduce you to the girls." The black-haired girl said. "This is Inca, Lindsey, Sue, Carly, Sandie, Maria, and I am Selene."  
  
Dumbledore and Minerva nodded politely and smiled. Madam Hooch waved cheerfully. Snape didn't say anything until Madam Hooch elbowed him on the ribs. "Ouch, I mean, hello."  
  
"And girls, I believe that you already know them." Selene said and the girls nodded. "So, let's go to the taxi stand. Follow me."  
  
As the group walked towards the exit, a woman with straight medium length brown hair, red highlights and brown eyes whispered to herself excitedly: "I can't believe that it is Severus Snape, I can't believe it!"  
  
She grabbed Selene's arm. "How did you manage to find them?"  
  
"I didn't, Maria, Dumbledore wants to know where is the taxi-stand so I decide to show them the way. I can't believe that they will be here, this must be fate."  
  
***  
  
"So, what are you doing here? I mean, aren't you supposed to be in Hogwarts?" Selene asked while waiting for the taxis.  
  
"No, it is summer now, so we decided to go on a vacation." Madam Hooch said cheerfully.  
  
"Where will you be staying?" Lindsey (the girl with curly auburn hair and blue eyes) asked politely.  
  
"Raffles The Plaza, Raffles The Plaza..." Maria prayed in her head.  
  
"Some hotel called..." Madam Hooch tried to remember but she couldn't. "What's the name again, Albus?"  
  
"Raffles The Plaza Singapore." Dumbledore said, as if he had memorized the name.  
  
"Yes!" Maria cheered silently.  
  
"Really? We are staying in that hotel too!" A girl with neck-long wavy dark blond hair (which she tied into a strict ponytail) but platinum streaks around the face and dark grey eyes (Sue) said in delight. "Which floor are you staying on?"  
  
"20th." Minerva said politely.  
  
"So are we!" A girl with straight blonde hair past her shoulders and crystal blue eyes (Carly) said in surprise.  
  
"Except for me, I rather stay at home." Selene said. "I live in this country. I don't see a reason why I should stay in a hotel when I have my own house here." She added when the teachers gave her a confused look. "Ah, here come the taxis!"  
  
***  
  
20 minutes later, the group arrived at Raffles The Plaza, which is a very luxurious hotel. "Whoa, look at this place!" Madam Hooch exclaimed when she entered her hotel room. She looked in awe at the colour television, mini bar and posh writing table. She rushed straight to the private balcony and looked out. "Wow, I can see almost whole view of Singapore here!"  
  
"Oh please, Madeline, it is not like the first time you have seen something like this." Snape said as he took off his black leather jacket and tossed it carelessly on an armchair.  
  
"You are so unenthusiastic." Madam Hooch said and rolled her eyes as Snape flopped down on one of the beds. (There are two king-size beds in the room)  
  
"I'm a Slytherin, what do you expect?" Snape said with his eyes closed.  
  
***  
  
In Dumbledore and Minerva's bedroom (which is next door), it is almost the same as Snape and Madam Hooch's, just that the room has a double bed.  
  
"I can't believe that we are here, this is great." Minerva said, untying her hair and let it down.  
  
"So where do you think we should go tomorrow?" Dumbledore asked, sitting down on the soft bed.  
  
"Somewhere where we can shop, I don't think I have enough Muggle things for the whole vacation."  
  
"You know, Minerva? If it is all right with her, maybe we should get Selene to be our tour guide." Dumbledore said, lying down on the bed. "I mean, she lives in this country, surely she knows where to go."  
  
Minerva brushed her hair and put down the brush. "Good idea, I will go and ask Mandy and Severus for their opinions."  
  
***  
  
Madam Hooch was checking out the walk-in closet when the doorbell rang softly. She closed the closet's door and went to open the main door. "Hi Minerva, what's up?"  
  
"Is Severus asleep?" Minerva asked.  
  
Madam Hooch looked at Snape, who was sleeping on the bed without even changing his clothes. "Yep, sleeping like a log."  
  
Minerva giggled. "Oh no, I am about to ask his opinion....anyway, Mandy, what do you think the idea of Selene as our tour-guide?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Selene, you know, the girl with black hair." Minerva said impatiently.  
  
"Oh! I don't mind." Madam Hooch said airily. "As for Severus, oh well, he is outvoted anyway. He has no choice but to go along with us."  
  
"All right then, I will ask her. Where is her room?"  
  
"I think she has gone home, she lives here, remember? Why don't you ask the girls for her number? They are in these two rooms." Madam Hooch pointed at two doors across her.  
  
"All right." Minerva said and rang the doorbell of one of the rooms.  
  
"Coming!" A voice called and Lindsey opened the door. "Oh hi, Professor McGonagall, hi, Madam Hooch."  
  
Minerva smiled. "Please, call us Minerva and Mandy." She looked into the room; two of the girls were sitting on one of the three beds, chatting. "Mind if we come in?"  
  
"Sure, come in." Lindsey said cheerfully as the teachers came in. "Girls, look who's here!"  
  
Carly and Sandie waved and greeted them politely.  
  
"Call us Mandy and Minerva." Mandy said kindly. She looked around. "Cool, this room is as dark as Severus' dungeon." She commented as she admired the chandelier.  
  
"Is Selene here?" Minerva asked.  
  
"No, she has left a few minutes ago." Carly said. "But she will come back tomorrow morning."  
  
"Does any one of you know a way to contact her?" Minerva asked politely.  
  
"I think we have her number here somewhere..." Sandie took her personal organizer out of her bag and started flipping. "Aeryn Alexander, Inca, Freelancer, Carly, Lindsey, Maria, Sue, Kat...Ah! Here it is." She showed Selene's number. "Go ahead and call her, she doesn't mind."  
  
Lindsey handed Minerva her handphone. Minerva smiled at her but then frowned. "How do you use this?"  
  
"Oops." Lindsey took the handphone and switched it on. "Press the numbers, then this." She said, pointing at the call button. "Then held it to your ear."  
  
"Thank you. Miss Lindsey." Minerva said and started dialing. "Hello? Are you Miss Selene? Right, this is Minerva speaking. Am I bothering you? Well, Albus suggest that we should get you to be our tour-guide, is it okay with you if you can show us around? Oh, you are showing your friends around Singapore too. Where will you be going? Shopping? Really? Thanks. All right. Good night." Minerva handed Lindsey the handphone. "Well, I hope you girls don't mind us joining you for the whole vacation."  
  
"Oh no, not that all!" The girls said.  
  
"Right, good night." Minerva said and she and Mandy went out of the door.  
  
"Good night!" The girls called and when Mandy closed the door, the girls cheered for joy.  
  
"Imagine! We, the members of the Albus and Minerva group, are going shopping with Albus and Minerva themselves! How exciting!" Lindsey said excitedly.  
  
"Don't forget Snape and Madam Hooch." Carly reminded.  
  
"I am going to tell the others..." Sandie said and rushed out of the door.  
  
***  
  
"Really?!" The girls in the other room exclaimed.  
  
"Really." Sandie said.  
  
"This is going to be great!" Sue said happily.  
  
"Going on a vacation with Severus Snape....Selene is right, this must be fate." Maria thought to herself dreamily. 


	2. Fun at the Mall Part 1

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
Disclaimer 2: I don't own the song "Complicated"  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 2: Fun at the mall Part 1  
  
Selene looked at her watch and clicked her tongue impatiently. She looked into one of the girls' hotel room and called: "Hurry up!"  
  
Maria put on one of her sandals and said: "Oh come on, Selene, chill out. It is not like the shopping mall will, like, escape if we don't arrive in time."  
  
"I know. But I afraid that the teachers, especially Professor Snape, will not be pleased..." Selene started.  
  
"Why didn't you say so?!" Maria asked, grabbing another sandal, put it on, and run into the bathroom to check her reflection.  
  
"What did I say?" Selene asked herself.  
  
"Are you girls ready?" Lindsey asked and checked her sky blue leather sandals with little white daisies on them to see if they are clean.  
  
"Ready." A girl with blond hair and blue eyes (Inca) said.  
  
"Ready." Sue said, putting on her sandals.  
  
"Me too." Maria said, rushing out of the bathroom.  
  
"Okay, let's go, the teachers are waiting..."  
  
***  
  
"Sorry if we are late." Selene said apologetically.  
  
"It's all right." Minerva said.  
  
Snape was as about to roll his eyes when he saw a lovely woman among the girls. She is older than the rest of the girls, wearing a white shirt with long sleeves, long black pants and sandals. He didn't notice her yesterday because he was too tired from the flight. Now what is her name again?  
  
"Think, Severus, think!" Snape thought to himself.  
  
"Professor McGonagall looks a lot younger in that outfit." Sandie whispered to Carly. Minerva was wearing a Muggle white T-shirt, blue shorts, and white tennis shoes. Her black hair had been pulled back into a ponytail.  
  
"So does Professor Dumbledore." Carly whispered back. Dumbledore was wearing a blue T-shirt, Bermuda shorts and tennis shoes.  
  
"Madam Hooch, you look so cool." Selene said, looking at Madam Hooch with her red tank top and long white pants.  
  
"Thanks." Madam Hooch said. "And call me Mandy, will you?"  
  
"Snape looks wonderful." Maria said admiringly, looking at Snape with his black shirt, jacket, jeans and boots. "Don't you think so, Sue?"  
  
"Um what? Yeah, I guess." Sue said in a bored tone.  
  
"So are we going to take a train to the mall or what?" Inca asked Selene.  
  
"I rent two convertibles. We will drive there."  
  
"Convertibles?! Cool!" The girls exclaimed excitedly.  
  
"Drive?" Maria asked. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes, I'm sure. But we are not the ones who are driving."  
  
"We are not?" Maria asked.  
  
"No, you will love to see who is driving, Maria." Selene grinned.  
  
Selene's words reached Snape's ears. "That's it, Maria!" He thought. "But I'm a pure-blood Slytherin, how can I fall in love with a Muggle? Wait a minute, did I just say fall in love? Oh shit."  
  
***  
  
"Oh come on, Selene, who is driving?" Maria demanded at the hotel entrance.  
  
"I'm not telling. Because here they come." Selene said and smiled at the drivers who drove the convertibles to them.  
  
The girls' mouths dropped open at the two drivers: Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape.  
  
"I didn't know Snape could drive." Inca said in awe, looking that Snape, who was wearing sunglasses.  
  
"He told me that when he was a Death-Eater, he learned driving so that he could get around in our world to torture Muggles. Okay, some of us have to sit in Snape's car. Any volunteers? Not me, I am going to sit in Dumbledore's car to give him directions."  
  
Maria raised her hand immediately.  
  
A few minutes later, Maria was sitting beside Snape, Inca, Lindsey and Sue were sitting behind them, chatting excitedly. Carly, Sandie and Selene were sitting in Dumbledore's car.  
  
"Err, Mandy?" Selene said.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Are you sure you want to sit there?" Selene asked uncertainly, looking at Madam Hooch, who was sitting behind Carly, Sandie and herself, ON the top of the backseat. (Think of the video cover of Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood)  
  
"Of course I'm sure." Madam Hooch grinned.  
  
"All right, let's move!" Dumbledore said and Minerva and Madam Hooch put on their sunglasses.  
  
"Cool." Sandie said.  
  
"I better bring my instant camera tomorrow." Selene thought to herself.  
  
***  
  
"Welcome to Causeway Point, in my opinion, one of the biggest shopping malls in Singapore." Selene said to the group like a tour-guide when they arrived in a big, rectangular building. "So, are you planning to walk in separate ways or together?"  
  
"And get lost in this 8-storey building? No way." Inca and Madam Hooch said in unison.  
  
"Girls?" Selene asked.  
  
"We don't mind walking together in a group." The girls said.  
  
"Albus? Minerva? Snape?" Selene asked.  
  
"Fine with us." Dumbledore said.  
  
***  
  
When they walked past a hair salon, Madam Hooch spotted a sign that says: "Dye Your Hair for just $15!" She grinned and grabbed Snape's arm. "Hey Severus, how about giving your hair a change of colour?"  
  
Snape frowned at the sign. "No way."  
  
"Come on, I dare you." Madam Hooch dared.  
  
"Go ahead, Severus, you can change your hair colour back if you don't like the results." Dumbledore said kindly.  
  
"I am not interested in this stupid Muggle invention." Snape said, folding his arms.  
  
"I think that it will be cool if he really dyes it." Maria said to Carly.  
  
Snape raised one of his eyebrows slowly when he heard that.  
  
***  
  
"I wonder how the Slytherins will react if they sees your new hairdo." Minerva grinned as Snape stepped out of the hair salon with a streak of sliver and green hair (think of Rogue in the movie X-Men).  
  
"They will probably freak out." Madam Hooch said and pretended to faint.  
  
"Can it, Mandy." Snape snapped as the group laughed.  
  
Maria sighed. "He is so cool."  
  
***  
  
"Hi, Madam! Want to buy some musical instruments?" A salesman asked as the group walked past a shop with a combination of a music school and a music instrument shop.  
  
"No thanks." Madam Hooch said.  
  
"Or do you want to play them?" The salesman asked.  
  
"Love to, but I won't buy them." Madam Hooch said and continuing walking with the group.  
  
"It's all right, you can still play them." The salesman said kindly.  
  
Madam Hooch stopped and pulled Dumbledore and Minerva to stop them from continuing walking. She grinned. "Really?" She asked and strolled into the shop.  
  
"Mandy? Mandy!" Minerva called. "We have shopping to do!"  
  
"That can wait! I want to try out this baby!" Madam Hooch said, taking a green electric guitar from the salesman and slipped the guitar strap around her neck.  
  
"And you, sir, would you like try our drums?" The salesman asked.  
  
Snape shook his head slowly.  
  
"Oh go on, Severus, it is not like you get to play drums everyday!" Dumbledore smiled.  
  
"Fine." Snape said unwillingly and took the sticks from the salesman. The group applauded at his willingness to join.  
  
"Ready, Severus?" Madam Hooch asked.  
  
"Ready." Snape said, sitting down behind a set of drums and beat one of the drums softly to see if it is working.  
  
"On the count of three, 1, 2, 3..." Madam Hooch counted and she struck a few cords of the guitar. Then Snape joined in, Madam Hooch cleared her throat and they started to play Avril Levigne's "Complicated".  
  
Uh huh, life's like this  
  
Uh huh, uh huh, that's the way it is  
  
Cause life's like this  
  
Uh huh, uh huh that's the way it is  
  
Chill out whatcha yelling' for?  
  
Lay back it's all been done before  
  
And if you could only let it be  
  
you will see  
  
I like you the way you are  
  
When we're drivin' in your car  
  
and you're talking to me one on one but you've become  
  
Somebody else round everyone else  
  
You're watching your back like you can't relax  
  
You're tryin' to be cool you look like a fool to me  
  
Tell me  
  
Why you have to go and make things so complicated?  
  
I see the way you're acting like you're somebody else gets me frustrated  
  
Life's like this you  
  
And you fall and you crawl and you break  
  
and you take what you get and you turn it into honesty  
  
and promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it  
  
no no no  
  
You come over unannounced  
  
dressed up like you're somethin' else  
  
where you are and where it's at you see  
  
you're making me  
  
laugh out when you strike your pose  
  
take off all your preppy clothes  
  
you know you're not fooling anyone  
  
when you've become  
  
Somebody else round everyone else  
  
Watching your back, like you can't relax  
  
Trying to be cool you look like a fool to me  
  
Tell me  
  
Why you have to go and make things so complicated?  
  
I see the way you're acting like you're somebody else gets me frustrated  
  
Life's like this you  
  
and You fall and you crawl and you break  
  
and you take what you get and you turn it into  
  
honesty  
  
promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it  
  
no no no  
  
Chill out whatcha yelling for?  
  
Lay back, it's all been done before  
  
And if you could only let it be  
  
You will see  
  
Somebody else round everyone else  
  
You're watching your back, like you can't relax  
  
You're trying to be cool, you look like a fool to me  
  
Tell me  
  
Why you have to go and make things so complicated?  
  
I see the way you're acting like you're somebody else gets me frustrated  
  
Life's like this you  
  
and you fall and you crawl and you break  
  
and you take what you get and you turn it into  
  
honesty  
  
promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it  
  
no no no  
  
Why you have to go and make things so complicated?  
  
I see the way you're acting like your somebody else gets me frustrated  
  
Life's like this you  
  
You fall and you crawl and you break  
  
and you take what you get and you turn it into honesty  
  
promise me I'm never gonna find you fake this  
  
no no no  
  
The group applauded when they finished. Madam Hooch and Snape handed the things back to the smiling salesman and they bow as the group applauded harder.  
  
"Good singing! Mandy!" Inca called.  
  
"Did you see that, Selene? Snape is so wonderful! He can even play the drums!" Maria said excitedly.  
  
"Yep! I didn't know that Mandy and Snape could perform! " Selene said cheerfully.  
  
***  
  
When they arrived at the 5th floor, the group decided to go separate ways because Dumbledore and Snape wanted to check out the game arcade. The girls decided to shop for clothes.  
  
"Severus, are you interested for a match?" Dumbledore asked, looking at the car-racing video games.  
  
"No." Snape said in a bored tone, shaking his head.  
  
"Ooooo, looks like the Head of the Slytherin house is getting cold-feet." Dumbledore said mischievously. He heard Minerva mentioned to him that Snape hates people to call him that.  
  
Snape narrowed his eyes. Minerva's attitude for him seems to be rubbing off on Dumbledore. He frowned and said: "You are on, Albus!"  
  
***  
  
"Have you chosen your car yet?" Dumbledore asked as he entered his selection of car and ran his long fingers on the plastic steering wheel.  
  
"Yes." Snape said, blowing a few strands of sliver and green hair out of his view.  
  
Both of their screens show the words:  
  
Ready  
  
Set...  
  
Go!  
  
Dumbledore stepped on the gas pedal and started driving.  
  
Snape turned his steering wheel sharply to the right. "You will never catch me, Albus!" 


	3. Fun at the Mall Part 2

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: Like what Freelancer says, My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Stoneygem: Albus and Minerva is a couple, but Snape and Madam Hooch isn't, they just share the same room but different bed.  
  
EvieBlack: See my profile, you will find the link to the AlbusandMinerva group.  
  
Chapter 3: Fun at the mall Part 2  
  
"Here, Minerva, what do you think of this?" Madam Hooch asked, showing Minerva a very short, black leather skirt at Giordano. Lindsey, Inca and Sue are at the shop Charles and Keith, which is next door, checking out the shoes. Carly was choosing between two different anime tops, thinking of which one to buy. Sandie was holding a pair of dark blue jeans to her hips to see how long the jeans is.  
  
Minerva stared at the skirt, then at Madam Hooch. "It suits you." She said, smiling.  
  
"Oh my, look, Selene! What do you think?" Maria asked, holding up a black sleeveless shirt to her chest. "Just what I always wanted!"  
  
Selene looked at her then at the shirt. "Cool." She said simply.  
  
"Great, I'm going to the cashier to pay it. Then I am going to wear it straight away." Maria said and dashed off to the cashier.  
  
"Wait for us!" Carly called, who had finally picked out her top, and Sandie took the jeans and followed Maria.  
  
"No, it is not for me." Madam Hooch said.  
  
"It's not?" Minerva asked, her smile faded.  
  
"Nope, it is for you." Madam Hooch said mischievously.  
  
"Me?! Are you nuts? It is too short!" Minerva said in disgust, examining the skirt. "I'm too old for this kind of dress. What do you think, girls?" She asked Selene, Carly, Sandie and Maria (they had paid their clothes and Maria is now wearing her shirt).  
  
"I think you are more suitable for robes and shorts." Carly said.  
  
"The skirt doesn't seem to suit you.." Selene said slowly.  
  
"No." Maria said.  
  
"I think it suits Madam Hooch better." Sandie said.  
  
"See?" Minerva said to Madam Hooch. "I think I will buy something else."  
  
"Okay, how about this?" Madam Hooch asked, putting the skirt away neatly and showed Minerva a pair of tight black jeans. "It shows off your figure nicely."  
  
Minerva raised an eyebrow at it and then looked at the girls.  
  
"Suit you." Carly and Selene said.  
  
"Go ahead and buy it." Maria said.  
  
"I think it suits you and Madam Hooch." Sandie said.  
  
"I think I'll try it." Minerva said, taking the jeans from Madam Hooch, took the dark blue sleeveless shirt that she had picked out and went to the changing room.  
  
"Too bad for the skirt, Albus will probably drool if he sees you in that." Madam Hooch grinned.  
  
Minerva blushed and glared at Mandy. "He will not. Do you just know him yesterday?" She asked, went into a cubicle and closed the door.  
  
The girls looked at each other. Selene had her mouth dropped open.  
  
"Excuse me, Mandy, but what do you mean by that?" Carly asked excitedly.  
  
"What?" Madam Hooch said, examining the price tag of a white top.  
  
"The sentence that makes Minerva blushes." Sandie said impatiently.  
  
Madam Hooch's yellow eyes sparkled with excitement. "There is one thing that I'm sure you Muggles don't know." She leaned forward and the girls gathered around to listen.  
  
"What are you girls doing?" A voice asked, they turned around and saw Lindsey, Inca and Sue with their hands full of shopping bags with the shop Charles and Keith's logo on it.  
  
"Mandy is going to tell us something." Selene said, beckoning them over and the girls went to listen.  
  
Madam Hooch looked behind her to see if Minerva has came out of the cubicle yet. Then she turned her attention to the girls. She whispered: "Albus and Minerva are married years ago. They are now sharing the same hotel room and the same bed." Madam Hooch said slowly and clearly. "Of course, You-Know- Who doesn't know about it." She added and looked confused when she saw the girls grinned at each other. "What?"  
  
"Oh my God, oh my God..." Maria said.  
  
"It's true. It's so damn real." Selene said.  
  
Lindsey had her mouth dropped open in surprise.  
  
"I can't believe that it is real!" Carly said happily.  
  
"Wait until we tell Aeryn!" Sandie said excitedly. "She will be so shock!"  
  
"And Freelancer and the others!" Inca said and she hugs Sue. "Oh my God, I can't believe it!"  
  
"Will somebody please tell me what's going on?" Madam Hooch asked in confusion.  
  
Sandie is the first one who managed to get control of herself. "Um, sorry. We are too excited. You see, we are the members of the Albus and Minerva group."  
  
Madam Hooch blinked. "The what?"  
  
"Albus and Minerva." Sandie repeated.  
  
"It is an internet fan club. Aeryn Alexander is the founder. All of us have one thing in common and that's supporting the relationship between Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall. We even write romances with Albus and Minerva as the main characters." Maria explained.  
  
Madam Hooch whistled. "Wow. I don't know that Albus and Minerva have a fan club. Hey, will you mind telling me what sort of stories you girls have written?"  
  
"Well, I'm sure that Aeryn and the others don't mind if we tell Madam Hooch." Inca said confidently.  
  
"Tell Madam Hooch what?" A voice asked and the girls looked at Minerva, who had the shirt and the jeans on.  
  
"Nothing." Lindsey said quickly. "Minerva, you look terrific! The clothes show off your nice figure perfectly."  
  
"You think so?" Minerva asked nervously, looking herself in the mirror. Sure enough, the jeans shows off her long, slim legs and the shirt fitted her slender body perfectly.  
  
"All of us think so." Selene said and the girls nodded in agreement.  
  
"All right." Minerva said. "And after this, let's find the boys."  
  
***  
  
"Albus, your car's speed is 300 km/hr!" Snape exclaimed, pressing his gas pedal harder.  
  
"Look who is talking!" Dumbledore said, giving a brief glance at Snape's screen. "Your car's speed is 400 km/hr!" He turned his steering wheel sharply to the left.  
  
Snape looked to his right. "Ah, there's Professor McGonagall and the others!"  
  
"Huh?" Dumbledore said, turning his attention to the game arcade entrance. No one is there. He turned his attention back to the screen and his eyes widened when he saw the words: You Lose. "Hey, you are cheating!"  
  
"Oh come on, Albus, you win me twice, let me win just this once!" Snape said, ruffling his sliver and green hair.  
  
"That doesn't count, you cheated." Dumbledore snapped. "Let's have one more game."  
  
"Fine." Snape said immediately. He put the coins into the machine and started choosing his car.  
  
Dumbledore chose the same car that he used for the past three matches and waited for Snape to choose his.  
  
Snape chose a green racing car and he pressed "Enter".  
  
Both of their screens show the words:  
  
Ready...  
  
Set....  
  
Go!  
  
Dumbledore pressed the gas pedal and his car zoomed off immediately. He heard an "ahem", he turned around, his mouth dropped open and he grinned sheepishly at Minerva, Madam Hooch and the girls. "Um, Severus?"  
  
"Don't even think about it, Albus, I won't fall for the same trick." Snape said, turning his steering wheel to the left.  
  
"Hi, Minerva. Do you have fun shopping?" Dumbledore asked cheerfully as he got out of his seat and joined Minerva.  
  
"Oh come on, Albus...." Snape said as he concentrated on his driving.  
  
"It's all right." Minerva said and Snape raised his eyebrows. He tore his eyes away from the screen and gaped at Minerva, Madam Hooch and the girls.  
  
"Wow, I don't know Severus likes this kind of stuff, wait until the students hear about this." Madam Hooch grinned.  
  
"Don't you dare." Snape growled.  
  
"Hey, have you done driving already, you have been here for almost 45 minutes!" A boy who is no older than 15 years old asked impatiently and in a superior tone.  
  
Snape's face darkened. He turned his face sharply to the boy behind him and glared at him menacingly. "No one ask you to stay here and wait, you filthy little brat." He snarled.  
  
The boy went pale at his words and he backed away a little.  
  
Snape folded his arms and continued to glare at the boy. "Well? Do you still want to use it?"  
  
The boy didn't answer.  
  
"Don't test my patience, boy." Snape sneered. "I have very little of it."  
  
"Err....I-I will u-use it later." The boy stammered and he scampered off.  
  
"You are a baby, you know that?!" Snape called after him and the boy didn't look back.  
  
"Severus." Dumbledore warned gently.  
  
"What?" Snape asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Dumbledore just looked at him.  
  
"I can't help it, Albus, he is such a spoilt brat." Snape said and saw Maria wearing a black sleeveless shirt. The shirt shows off her upper body in an attractive way and he likes it.  
  
"Slap yourself when you get back to the hotel, Severus, you can't like her, you mustn't." He muttered to himself.  
  
***  
  
When the group got back to the hotel, Madam Hooch said to the girls: "Wait for me, okay? I am going to take a bath first, then I will come your rooms to ask about the stories."  
  
"Okay." The girls said cheerfully.  
  
"What stories?" Minerva asked.  
  
"It's none of your business." Madam Hooch grinned.  
  
Minerva pouted. "Fine." She turned to Selene. "Any plans for tomorrow?"  
  
"Sure. How about the Night Safari?"  
  
"What's that?" Dumbledore asked with interest.  
  
"It's a Night Zoo."  
  
"What happen to the Day Zoo?" Inca asked.  
  
"Oh come on, the idea of going to Day Zoo is too,..." Selene can't find the right word.  
  
"Common?" Carly asked.  
  
"Yeah, that's it. The Night Safari is much more exciting." Selene said. "I promise." She added. "Okay, the Night Safari will not be open until 7.30pm and will not be closed until midnight. So I will come tomorrow at 8pm. In the meantime, enjoy yourself and have a nice day." Selene said and went to one of the girls' hotel room.  
  
****  
  
Usually at Hogwarts, Snape doesn't mind Madam Hooch's singing, her singing is pretty good. But today, her singing bothers him. He sat up on his bed and called to the bathroom irritably: "Madeline, will you stop singing that Muggle song already?!"  
  
Madam Hooch ignored him and continued to sing "Complicated" in the shower.  
  
Snape frowned, lay down again, grabbed his pillow and covered his ears.  
  
The song sort of reminds him about the situation between him and Maria. Why is she a Muggle? Why can't she be a witch, or better, a pureblood?  
  
"Tell me! Why you have to go and make things so complicated?" Madam Hooch sang loudly. "I see the way you're acting like you are somebody else gets me frustrated!"  
  
Yeah, why in Merlin's sake does all this has to be so complicated? Snape thought.  
  
He has absolutely no idea. 


	4. Night Safari

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
Disclaimer 2: One of Carly's lines come from "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" (Yep, I am obsessed of writing the lines, see "Stories of the Hogwarts Sisterhood" disclaimer if you don't know what am I talking about) so you may find it familiar and I don't own it.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: Like what Freelancer says, My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Note: Maria, you better read this! I hope you like it.  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 4: Night Safari  
  
"Hey, what is that?" Inca asked at the Night Safari the next night, pointing at a small hut beside a small exhibition of reptile bones and dinosaurs' information.  
  
"That?" Selene said absentmindedly, still looking at the skull of a snake. "The Bat House." She straightened herself up. "Anyone interested of going in?"  
  
"No way, I hate bats!" Carly said immediately.  
  
"Fine with us." The rest of the group said.  
  
"OK, you stay outside and wait for us then." Selene sang, leading the rest in.  
  
"Hey, wait a minute, you can't all go!" Carly said desperately and looked around her. The Night Safari was completely different from the Day Zoo. While the Day Zoo was bright and full of life, the Night Safari was dark and spooky.  
  
"I will stay with you. One huge greasy-haired bat at Hogwarts is enough for me anyway." Madam Hooch said and tried to look as innocent as possible when Snape turned his head around and scowled at her.  
  
***  
  
"Selene?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Why didn't you tell us that the bats can fly around freely in the bat house?" Sue demanded and ducked when a bat swooped past her, nearly missed her head. The bat house was pretty big, bats were often found hanging from the branches within the visitors' reach and they could be found flying past the visitors. Dumbledore and Minerva were already near the exit, looking at the description of a fruit bat that was engraved on a wooden stand.  
  
Selene didn't respond.  
  
"I'm outta here." Sue said in fear and went to the exit as quickly as possible.  
  
"Me too." The rest said (Except for Dumbledore, Minerva, Snape and Maria) and followed suit.  
  
"Oh come on!" Selene called, she forget completely about Maria and went after them.  
  
Dumbledore and Minerva went out a few moments later, thinking that Snape was outside with the rest.  
  
Maria didn't even notice that the rest had left; she was busily looking at a bat, which was staring back at her with its big black eyes. And when she looked behind her, she found herself alone in the bat house. "Girls? Selene? Sue? Inca? Minerva?" She called.  
  
No response. All Maria could hear was the flapping of the bats' wings.  
  
"Uh oh." Maria mumbled.  
  
"Maria? Is that you?" A familiar voice asked and Maria turned sharply around. "Ah! Oh my God, Professor Snape! (Snape didn't allow the girls to call him Severus or Snape) You scared me to death!"  
  
"Didn't mean to." Snape said shortly. "Where are the others?"  
  
Maria shrugged.  
  
Snape rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's get out of here and find them."  
  
Maria nodded and as they went, another bat came flying dangerously near Maria and as she ducked to avoid being slapped on the face by it, she lost her balance and Snape saw it so he....  
  
.... caught Maria neatly in his arms.  
  
Maria blushed deeply because to the outsiders, Snape looked like he was hugging her from behind.  
  
Snape's cheek went pink. "Oh Merlin, what will Hooch say if she sees me like this?! She won't let me have the end of it?!" He thought in panic, grasped Maria's shoulders firmly to steady her. "Walk steadily, will you?" He said sharply, trying to be himself again. But before he could stop himself, he asked: "Are you all right?"  
  
Maria blinked. It was so unlike Snape to be.....gentle. "Um, yeah. Now let's go." She said quickly and walked toward the exit as fast as possible.  
  
***  
  
When Maria and Snape got out of the bat house, Selene had an impatient look on her face. "Ah, you two are out! Finally! Now let's go somewhere else."  
  
As Selene led the group, Madam Hooch tapped on Snape's shoulder to get his attention and she teased: "Can't bear to leave your relatives?"  
  
"Oh shut up." Snape snapped.  
  
"What happened to you? I thought you had left the bat house with us." Lindsey said to Maria.  
  
"I was looking at a bat when you all left." Maria said. "And I glad I did." She thought.  
  
***  
  
"Did anyone of you notice that the Clouded Leopard looks like an angry McGonagall?" Snape said unmercifully, loud enough for Minerva to hear.  
  
"Haha, very funny, Severus." Minerva snapped. "If I remember correctly, the python looks exactly like you."  
  
"Come on, let's go to see the Golden Cat." Selene said, trying not to laugh.  
  
Maria looked at the different path to the lions, then at Selene, who was leading the group to the other direction. She was dying to see the lions but she didn't mention it to Selene. "Oh, just a look, then I will join the rest...." She thought and left the group quietly to go to the different path.  
  
"My legs are tired....." Snape heard Sandie complained when he noticed Maria sneaking out of the group.  
  
"What the....." He started and began to follow her.  
  
***  
  
Maria stopped in front of a wooden fence that separated her and the lions' territory and leaned forward on the fence to have a closer view of the lioness.  
  
As she did, someone called: "Maria!"  
  
She turned and saw Snape frowning. "What?"  
  
"How can you leave the group like that? Do you have any idea how serious this is?!" Snape demanded. (Yep, this is his line in CoS movie, and I don't own it!)  
  
"Oh come on, it won't take a while..." Maria said.  
  
"You must go back, didn't you remember what that Selena girl....." Snape started.  
  
"Selene." Maria corrected.  
  
"Whatever. The point is, she said that unless you know where you are going, you must stay with her or you will get lost and accidentally wander into the tram route, where the animals are allowed to walk ANYWHERE freely!" Snape said loudly.  
  
Maria shifted her weight from one foot to another and didn't respond.  
  
Snape growled. For some reason, he felt that he had the responsibility to watch over Maria. He grabbed her hand and said: "Come on, or we can't catch up with the rest!"  
  
Maria stared at his hand.  
  
Snape realized what she was staring at and let go quickly. "Follow me." He said gruffly and started to walk without looking behind.  
  
***  
  
"I think Selene and the others went that way." Maria said, pointing to her left when they came back where Selene and the others used to be.  
  
"I thought they went this way." Snape said, pointing the dark path in front of him.  
  
"No, they went that way!" Maria insisted.  
  
"No...they...." Snape said slowly. Then he paused to think. "Maria? I think we are lost." He said finally. 


	5. Night Safari 2

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: Like what Freelancer says, My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Note: Some of the lines are provided by Sue herself, thanks Sue!  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Note: Maria, you better read this! I hope you like it.  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 5: Night Safari Part 2  
  
"Lost?!" Maria exclaimed. She searched her pockets frantically for her handphone and took it out. "Okay, Selene's handphone number is...." She punched the numbers and waited for Selene to pick up.  
  
"......Is not available, please leave your message after the beep...." Maria heard on her phone.  
  
"What? Don't tell me that her phone batteries had gone flat?! And she didn't even charge it before she left her house!" Maria said and cursed Selene under her breath.  
  
"Great, we are struck in a Night Zoo!" Snape said sarcastically. "And it is entirely your fault." He added.  
  
Maria's mouth dropped open. "My fault?!"  
  
"If you didn't walk away from the group, we wouldn't be lost!" Snape snapped.  
  
"Okay, so that part is my fault, but it is not my fault that someone, who shall remain nameless, doesn't know the way back to the others!" Maria said loudly. "Dreamy or not, this guy knows how to get on people's nerves." She thought.  
  
"I didn't see any help from you." Snape sneered.  
  
Maria opened her mouth to say something but then she closed it. She squatted down and buried her head in her hands.  
  
"Pathetic." Snape thought, rolling his eyes. For a moment, he thought that Maria was crying. He folded his arms for a while, stared at Maria, who was still squatting on the floor with her face in her hands, and said quietly: "I'm sorry." Maria lifted her head up. She looked upset but Snape noticed that she didn't have any tearstains on her face at all.  
  
"I'm really sorry." Snape caught himself saying. "Wait a minute, was that what I had just said?" He thought. He had made a lot of Gryffindors (mostly 1st years) cried before, and he never, never said the word "Sorry" to them. (Unless Minerva threatened to hex him if he doesn't) And now he was saying sorry to a Muggle who didn't even cry? Before he could say something that could cover up what he had just said, he offered Maria his hand.  
  
Maria stared at his hand and took it.  
  
Snape pulled her up to her feet. "All right, let's try that way. (He pointed to his left) If we can't find them, we will try (he pointed to his right) that way."  
  
Maria nodded.  
  
"What the hell is wrong with me?" Snape thought tiredly.  
  
***  
  
"For the second time, I apologize. I am really, really, sorry!" Selene said in one of the girls' hotel room 3 hours later. "I should have charged my phone batteries. I also should have kept an eye on you. In the end I let you wandered off and you got struck with Snape until I found you outside the gift shop an hour later."  
  
"No, I should thank you to let me wander off." Maria said softly.  
  
"Huh?" Selene asked, scratching her head.  
  
Maria just sighed and continued to look out of the window, admiring the night scenery.  
  
"I can't believe you wanted to take us into a bat house!" Carly said in disgust.  
  
"Hey, I told you it's a Nights Zoo....and of course there are some night- active animals..." Selene said, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, especially bats!" The other girls exclaimed.  
  
"Mostly bats...." Maria said dreamily.  
  
"What's wrong with her?" Inca whispered to Sue.  
  
Madam Hooch grinned. "And then you even have to bear with a human bat." She said, sitting cross-leg on a bed.  
  
Everybody snickered and Sue, with a sly glance at Maria, who still had a faraway, dreamy look on her face, muttered under her breath: "But some people seem to like them...they even try to get lost with them..."  
  
"Ooooo.." The girls said together and Madam Hooch exclaimed: "What, don't tell me that you like that slimeball!"  
  
Maria blushed but didn't respond.  
  
"Look, he is a Slytherin...." Madam Hooch started.  
  
"So what?" Maria asked.  
  
"A pureblood.."  
  
"So what?"  
  
"A Death Eater..."  
  
"An ex-Death Eater, to be exact." Maria said.  
  
"Hey, don't quote that line from my story!" Selene called. (See "Snape's Worst Holiday" Chapter 1)  
  
"Sorry." Maria said apologetically.  
  
"He bullies the Gryffindors...." Madam Hooch started again.  
  
"I will turn a blind eye on that."  
  
"He is slimy...."  
  
Maria's head turned to Madam Hooch sharply. "He is not slimy!" She protested loudly.  
  
"Yep, she likes him all right." Lindsay whispered to Sandie.  
  
"Okay, okay! He is not slimy!" Madam Hooch said, throwing up her hands.  
  
"That's better." Maria said satisfaction and turned her attention back to the scenery.  
  
"So, girls, tell me another story featuring Dumbledore and Minerva." Madam Hooch said, turning her head to the girls.  
  
"How about "Trust Me" by Freelancer?" Carly suggested.  
  
"Nah, I heard that already." Madam Hooch said and lay down on her stomach.  
  
" "Another Time" by Aeryn Alexander?" Inca said.  
  
"No, I heard that one too."  
  
" "My Turn to Protect" ? By Carly herself?" Lindsay suggested, looking at Carly.  
  
"No way, I am not going to spoil the rest of the story by saying it now." Carly said firmly.  
  
"I want to hear a short one." Madam Hooch said.  
  
"Aw, too bad, I want to suggest Selene's "Stories of the Hogwarts Sisterhood" you will love that one..." Inca said. "But it is really, really long."  
  
"Ya-ya." Maria suddenly muttered absent-mindedly.  
  
They decided to ignore Maria on that one.  
  
" "Snape's Worst Holiday" is short enough." Lindsay said.  
  
"I heard that one already." Madam Hooch said and grinned. "Uncle Severe, ha, wait until I tell Severus about that story."  
  
"And he is sweet enough to take care of Athena...." Maria said dreamily.  
  
"No way, he will hex me or send me a Howler!" Selene protested, trying to ignore Maria.  
  
"How about...." Sue began to think. "Err.... Ah! I know! "That's Preposterous" by Freelancer?"  
  
"I haven't heard that one yet." Madam Hooch said happily. "Okay, shoot."  
  
"You guys go ahead. Minerva left her glasses with me and I need to go to her room to give her back." Selene said, getting up from the floor and going to the door.  
  
"Okay." Sue said and turned to Madam Hooch. "You know Rita Skeeter, right? Well....."  
  
***  
  
"Albus, have you seen my glasses?" Minerva asked, searching through her bag in their room. She had a towel around her body and she didn't tie up her wet hair.  
  
"No." Albus said, giving a brief glance at a small table. He found nothing and continued to dry his hair with a towel. "Minerva, why don't you wear something first before you catch a cold?" He asked, his eyes followed Minerva around the room. "It is unhealthy to run around with a towel after a bath."  
  
"Speak for yourself." Minerva said, pulling the edge of her towel higher. She raised her eyebrow at Dumbledore, who just had a towel around his lower body and went to the bathroom. "And I better check with Hogwarts to see if Poppy is still alive, you seem to be channeling her spirit."  
  
Dumbledore chuckled and picked up his shirt from the floor.  
  
The doorbell rang.  
  
Dumbledore left his shirt on the floor and went to get the door.  
  
"Hi, Al...." Selene started and her words hang there. She raised her eyebrows at the sight of Dumbledore.  
  
"Yes?" Dumbledore asked as if there was nothing wrong.  
  
"Err....Minerva left her glasses with me." Selene said, handing Dumbledore Minerva's glasses, not quite looking at Dumbledore.  
  
"Thanks. Minerva has been looking for it." Dumbledore said, taking Minerva's glasses. "Sorry, I should have wear something on first, but I can't keep whoever is standing outside the door waiting."  
  
"Yeah..." Selene said slowly.  
  
"Albus, I still can't find my glasses!" Minerva said, walking out of the bathroom.  
  
Selene looked up and her mouth dropped open.  
  
"Oh my goodness! Sorry, Selene, I should have wore something, excuse me!" Minerva said embarrassedly and ducked into the bathroom.  
  
"I thank you on Minerva's behalf." Dumbledore said, smiling.  
  
"...Err...you are welcome." Selene managed to say. "I better go, it's late." She said, looking at her watch.  
  
"See you tomorrow. Thank you for spending your time with us." Dumbledore said politely.  
  
"You are welcome. Goodnight." Selene said and left. When Dumbledore closed the door, Selene ran straight to one of the girls' room. "Wait until the girls hear about this!" She said and paused. "Nah, this is private. Maybe I should keep it to myself." 


	6. Albus and Minerva's Big Splash and the U...

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
Disclaimer 2: Eternal's "Angel of Mine" doesn't belong to me.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: Like what Freelancer says, My fic, my rules. So there is no SARS in Singapore in this fic. (Anyway, the situation has improved greatly in Singapore)  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Note: Maria, you better read this! I hope you like it.  
  
Note 2: The AlbusandMinerva group's "School Anthem" is not confirmed yet, so this is just an example.  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 6: Albus and Minerva's Big Splash and the Underwater World  
  
The next morning, during breakfast at the hotel's restaurant, Sue noticed that Selene (who came early) didn't eat anything. She was staring at Dumbledore and Minerva and frowning at the same time.  
  
"Selene? Selene!" Sue called, waving her hand in front of Selene.  
  
"Huh? What?" Selene asked.  
  
"What's wrong with you, you look like you have something very important to tell. Is it about Albus and Minerva? Did you see something in their room last night?" Sue asked and grinned when she saw Selene raised her black eyebrows. "Aha! I hit the nail on the head, didn't I?"  
  
Selene stared at Sue, wondering whether to tell Sue about what she had seen last night in Dumbledore and Minerva's room. But when she saw the eagerness on Sue's face, she knew that she couldn't hold it much longer. "Okay, last night...." She began.  
  
"W-wait, this is a stuff for Albus and Minerva group, so I am going to call the girls." Sue said and run off before Selene could say anything. She came back to the table with the rest of the girls and they all sat around Selene as if she was going to tell a long story.  
  
Selene cleared her throat and started talking. She had to talk softly in case Dumbledore and the others overheard her. "I'm not good at telling things but here goes. Last night, when you all were telling Mandy about Freelancer's "That's Preposterous"....."  
  
***  
  
After breakfast, when the group got into their cars outside the hotel, Maria, as usual, hopped into the seat next to Snape. Sue rolled her eyes at her, got into Dumbledore's car and sat beside Selene at the backseat.  
  
"Honestly, sometimes I wanna shake Maria that she snaps out of her ...whatever for dear Severus, but does she listen? No..." Sue complained.  
  
"Oh come on, let's "celebrate" Selene's discovery by singing our "School Anthem"!" Inca whispered and the girls grinned.  
  
In Snape's car, Lindsey was enjoying the wind blowing on her face as she looked out to Singapore's scenery when she heard someone singing: "When I first saw you I already knew, there was something inside of you...."  
  
Lindsey looked behind her and saw Inca, Selene and Sue singing Eternal's "Angel of Mine" Selene grinned and waved. Lindsey smiled, got Maria, Carly and Sandie's attention, and all of them started to sing their "School Anthem" along with Selene, Inca and Sue loudly.  
  
Dumbledore, Minerva, Snape and Madam Hooch, on the other hand, had no idea why they started to sing a love song in the car.  
  
***  
  
"Okay, here are the tickets." Selene asked at the ticket booth outside the Underwater World in Sentosa, Singapore's Island Resort.  
  
"$17.15....What?! You are joking, are you?" Madam Hooch exclaimed after she had read the price on her ticket.  
  
"No. Because we get to go two places. So it's worth it. The Underwater World," Selene pointed at the entrance. "And the Pink Dolphin Lagoon."  
  
"Yeah! We got to see....." Carly started. "W-wait a minute, what did you say?"  
  
"Pink Dolphin Lagoon."  
  
"Pink?" Carly asked as she raised her eyebrow.  
  
"Yes, I said pink." Selene said firmly. "Now let's go in."  
  
"Look, Minerva, there's sea turtles in this pool." Dumbledore said with interest from where he and Minerva were standing on a bridge at the Turtle Sanctuary outside the entrance.  
  
"Hey Albus, why don't you and Minerva stand there while I take a snapshot?" Selene asked as she took out her camera. She winked at the girls and whispered: "Anyone want to a copy of this picture?"  
  
"Sure...." Dumbledore began. Then he stared at the wooden railing and sat on it.  
  
"Albus, what are you doing? Be careful!" Minerva cried.  
  
"Don't worry, Minerva, it's safe. I didn't see any warning signs about not to sit on the railing." Dumbledore said cheerfully. "Want to sit beside me?"  
  
"No way." Minerva said immediately.  
  
Selene tried to move as back as she could. She then lowered her camera to say: "Err, Minerva? Would you sitting beside Albus? I can't get a full picture of you two if you don't."  
  
Minerva looked at Dumbledore uncertainly, and then she unwillingly climbed on beside him. "Albus, we really shouldn't sit on this...."  
  
"It will be all right." Dumbledore reassured.  
  
"Good, now don't move." Selene said as she moved her camera to her face.  
  
Suddenly, a large crowd of tourists came out of the entrance, blocking Selene's view.  
  
"Oh man...." Selene groaned and waited impatiently for the tourists to pass.  
  
Dumbledore turned his head around and looked at the water below him. When a turtle swam by, someone bumped into Minerva accidentally.  
  
"Uh oh." Carly said as she watched Minerva clutched onto the back of Dumbledore's shirt, pulling him down with her.  
  
"AHHHH!!!" The girls and Madam Hooch screamed as they watched the couple fell...  
  
SPLASH  
  
....into the pool.  
  
"Oh my Gods!" Selene shrieked, rushed to the bridge and looked down to the pool.  
  
"Somebody get help!" Snape yelled.  
  
Selene watched as Dumbledore resurfaced with Minerva. "Are you two all right?" She called.  
  
"Oh my, I am so sorry!" The tourist said apologetically.  
  
"It's all right, we are all right!" Dumbledore called, sweeping his wet hair off his face.  
  
"I told you not to sit on the railing! Look what happened to us!" Minerva screeched.  
  
"At least we got to swim with the turtles!" Dumbledore grinned.  
  
Minerva rolled her eyes. "What a wild husband I have." She thought.  
  
***  
  
"Minerva, Albus, are you two okay?" Madam Hooch asked in concern after Minerva and Albus being helped out by one or two of the workers.  
  
"Yes." Dumbledore and Minerva said.  
  
"Come on, we need to get you two something dry to wear." A worker said and Dumbledore and Minerva followed them. "All of you go in first, we will catch up." Dumbledore called.  
  
***  
  
A few minutes later, Dumbledore and Minerva caught up with the group in the Entrance Hall's Touch Pool, where visitors may touch a variety of harmless marine creatures, wearing grey, baggy clothes.  
  
"What happened to your clothes?" Carly asked.  
  
"In the staff room, they are trying to dry them as fast as they can." Minerva said as she watched Selene, who was trying to touch a small stingray.  
  
"Come on now, come back to me...." Selene sang as if she was talking to a baby as the stingray swam away. "Come back to Mommy....."  
  
"What is Selene doing?" Minerva asked, raising her eyebrows.  
  
"I think water and marine creatures appeal to her." Madam Hooch replied.  
  
***  
  
"Looks like Selene like the marine creatures very much." Maria observed as she watched Selene gave up on the stingray and tried to reach a starfish.  
  
"Yep." Lindsey said and just run her fingers in the water. "The water is so cool."  
  
"Really?" Maria asked and saw what Lindsey was doing. She followed her actions. "Yeah, it....." Maria started, still watching Selene, who was still trying to reach a starfish, when her fingers brushed past someone else's fingers, which were underwater too. "Oops, sorry, I...." Maria said, finally turned her attention away from Selene.  
  
As she did, Selene tripped and nearly fell into the pool. Sue's eyes widened and she held Selene back just in time.  
  
"Didn't...." Maria stopped her sentence when she realized whose fingers she was touching.  
  
Severus Snape's.  
  
Maria withdrew her hand as quickly as possible as if she had received an electric shock. "I'm really sorry, Professor, I didn't mean to....." She said quickly.  
  
"It's all right." Snape said.  
  
"Huh?" Maria asked.  
  
"I said it's all right." Snape said gently.  
  
"Oh. Thanks." Maria said as she blushed.  
  
***  
  
After walking through the Underwater World, the group went straight to the Pink Dolphin Lagoon, which was located at the Central Beach in Sentosa.  
  
"Selene, are you sure that the dolphins are pink?" Carly asked for the third time.  
  
"Yes." Selene said, pointing at the Pink Dolphin Lagoon's logo. "See?"  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the "Meet the Dolphins" Session is about to start, please take your seats."  
  
Carly and the others sat down and she watched in awe at the dolphins, which were pale pink instead of the usual gray. "You are right, they are pink! Wish I can go nearer...."  
  
***  
  
After the dolphins' performances were over, the dolphin trainer allowed the visitors to touch and feed the dolphins. "Any volunteers?" The trainer asked.  
  
"Go on, Carly, this is your big chance!" Sandie said.  
  
"Go on, take it or leave it." Selene said. "I can take a snapshot of you with the dolphin."  
  
"Err...." Carly started.  
  
"Come on, the dolphins won't bite you." Inca said.  
  
Carly didn't respond.  
  
Sue rolled her eyes, took Carly's hand and raised it. At the time, Maria raised hers.  
  
"Yes, I see two volunteers!" The trainer called. "Please come forward!"  
  
Carly looked at the others, got out of her seat and walked towards the beach. Maria jumped to her feet and followed. Selene checked her camera for film and went after them. As Dumbledore (who got his clothes back) watched the girls touching the pink dolphins, he said to Snape, who was sitting beside him: "Miss Maria is gentle, isn't she?"  
  
"Yes...." Snape said absentmindedly, then he realized what Dumbledore was saying and he turned his head sharply at him. "When did you know about this?"  
  
"Since the day at the mall." Dumbledore said simply.  
  
"This man really doesn't miss a trick." Snape thought. 


	7. Sleeping Beauty and the Woman Who Quotes

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Note: Maria, you better read this! I hope you like it.  
  
Note 2: OH MERLIN, I ACTUALLY DIDN'T UPDATE THIS FOR MORE THAN 5 MONTHS?! I'm really sorry!!!! I have this horrible writer's block.. and this story is getting hard to write, almost want to give up... anyway, hope you all like this..  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Minerva Dumbledore1, Laura Kay- I like that part too *grins*  
  
Child-of-the-Dawn- Yes, there are really pink dolphins in Singapore  
  
Des-Diablo- Cool, I seldom see fellow Singaporeans here!  
  
Raptor_mimicat, isabelle3, Captain Amelia- Thank you!  
  
Chapter 7: Sleeping Beauty and the Woman Who Quotes  
  
When evening had arrived, Selene brought her group to the Musical Fountain, their last stop at Sentosa.  
  
"Gather around here," she said at the entrance. "Okay, let me give you a brief introduction on the Musical Fountain. One of the most popular attractions on Singapore's island of fun, the Musical Fountain was a first in its kind. Daily performances on a stage without any live performers, save the dancing water, often leaves visitors with a sense of exhilaration. Each show is an integrated ballet of music, light, laser and colour and at sundown, dancing water jets, pretty laser images, motion pictures projected onto a giant waterscreen and lively music set the stage for a theatre of mystical drama and stunning effects."  
  
"That is brief?" Mandy asked.  
  
Selene didn't respond.  
  
"Cool, I can't wait to see the performance." Maria said.  
  
***  
  
Maria didn't stick to her word.  
  
Once the group sat down (which was quite a relief to all because they had been walking around Sentosa for the whole day, and the place is not exactly small), Maria was so tired that by the time the performance started, she was asleep. The others, however, were not as tired as her.  
  
"Amazing! This is just like magic!" Sue said in awe.  
  
Selene frowned as that sentence sounded familiar. "Sue, did you quote that from somewhere?"  
  
"You guess." Came a simple reply.  
  
***  
  
The performance took half an hour and when it was over, the group finally realized that Maria was asleep (all of them were too obsessed with the show to notice her).  
  
"Maria, wake up! The show is over." Inca said after she got up.  
  
No response.  
  
"Maria?" Minerva asked, louder this time.  
  
Still no response.  
  
"Maria!" Carly said, slapping her on the shoulder gently.  
  
She continued sleeping. Even the noisy footsteps and talking of the people around them couldn't wake her up.  
  
"Boy, she is a heavy sleeper, isn't she?" Madam Hooch asked finally.  
  
"She might have died and you wouldn't know the difference." Sue said, grinning.  
  
Again, Selene found that sentence familiar. She brushed the thought aside and clicked her tongue impatiently. "Now what? Carry her to the car?"  
  
"I guess so." Sandie said slowly.  
  
"But who is going to carry her?" Lindsey asked.  
  
"Not the girls, of course.." Selene said, folding her arms.  
  
After a while, the girls turned their heads slowly to Snape.  
  
"What?"  
  
All of them gave him an evil smile.  
  
"Oh no, not me, ask Albus, will you?" Snape said in panic.  
  
"Oh no, Severus, I am too old to carry her." Dumbledore said, smiling.  
  
"Is that so? I didn't see you complaining when you carried Minerva back to your room during Christmas." Snape snapped.  
  
The girls nudged each other and smiled at this little piece of information. Selene mentally reminded herself to write that down in her diary when she got home.  
  
Dumbledore didn't answer; he was too busying watching the night sky (The performance was held outdoors).  
  
Snape returned his attention to the girls. "It is rather embarrassing to carry a woman back to the car."  
  
"Then suggest another non-magical way to bring her back." Minerva said.  
  
Snape went silent as he tried to think.  
  
***  
  
"Too bad that Maria is sleeping through this." Sue thought as she watched Lindsey opened the car door at the parking lot in Sentosa.  
  
Snape put Maria down onto her seat carefully (he couldn't think of another non-magical way to bring her back).  
  
He was just about to close the door when Selene said: "Hm, Professor? I think you have forgotten something."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Seatbelt. That's the traffic law. You must put on your seatbelt while driving."  
  
Snape rolled his eyes in annoyance and yanked open the door. "You do it."  
  
"Why me? You are the one who is standing closer to her." Selene said and grinned.  
  
Snape scowled. "Fine." he snapped and helped Maria to put on her seatbelt.  
  
"Really, Maria shouldn't sleep through this!" Sue hissed to Inca.  
  
***  
  
"Oh great, she is getting heavy." Snape muttered as he shifted Maria a little with his arms as the group took the hotel lift.  
  
"Need any help?" Madam Hooch asked in an innocent tone.  
  
"Would you if I ask?" Snape asked irritably.  
  
Ignoring his tone, Madam Hooch sniggered (which helped nothing except to increase Snape's annoyance) and leaned forward to ask the girls. "What story is it tonight?"  
  
***  
  
An hour later, Selene gave a brief glance at Maria, who was sleeping on her hotel bed. "I can't believe that she slept through all this." she said in disbelief.  
  
"She will regret it when she wakes up." Inca said.  
  
"Yeah, her crush carries her from Sentosa and she didn't even know." Lindsey said.  
  
"Never mind about her, just give me another story." Madam Hooch said excitedly.  
  
"How about Jestana's 'Start Over?'" Carly suggested.  
  
Selene sighed positively at the story's name. "That is a lovely one." she said dreamily.  
  
"Okay, I will tell it." Sandie said. "Let's see.."  
  
"Wait a minute, what time is it?" Selene asked.  
  
"It's tiger time." Sue said, quoting the sentence from a beer commercial.  
  
Selene gave her a look but didn't say anything.  
  
"What?"  
  
"It's 9.45." Inca said after she had looked at her watch.  
  
"You girls go ahead; I think I better go home," Selene said, getting up. "By the way, we are going to the amusement park tomorrow."  
  
"Oh great, I am not very fond of those parks." Sue muttered while Carly and Sandie said: "Cool!"  
  
"I want to take those scary ones." Sandie said.  
  
"Goodnight." Selene said.  
  
"Bye." The group said in chorus and she left.  
  
After Selene left, Sandie started the story and when she was done, Madam Hooch cried: "Ha! I turned out to be the one who bring them back together!"  
  
Madam Hooch's exclamation finally woke Maria up and when she did, she looked around without moving her head and asked to no one in particular: "How did I get back here?"  
  
"Sounds like Sleeping Beauty is up." Sue said.  
  
"Now where did I hear that sentence before? Oh well, just h-how..." Maria yawned as she sat up.  
  
"You will not be happy if we tell you." Inca warned.  
  
Maria studied the girls for a moment and asked: "Where's Selene?"  
  
"Gone home, it's already 10pm, you know." Sandie said.  
  
"When did we get back here?"  
  
"More than an hour ago." Carly said.  
  
"How did I get myself here?" Maria asked.  
  
"You want to know the truth?" Madam Hooch asked slowly. She looked like she trying not to laugh.  
  
"Yeah." Maria said, wondering why Madam Hooch was behaving like that.  
  
"Fine, Severus carries you all the way from Sentosa to here."  
  
"WHAT? He did?" Maria asked in shock.  
  
"Yeah." The girls said together.  
  
"Except in the car, of course." Sandie said. "Guess what? He even buckled your seatbelt for you."  
  
"He carries you like a groom carrying his bride." Madam Hooch said and burst out laughing at Maria's disappointed expression.  
  
"You looked so comfortable in his arms." Lindsey said and the girls giggled.  
  
"OH! Why do I have to sleep through all this?!" Maria said and lay back down, burying her face in her pillow.  
  
"I told you that you will not happy if we tell you." Inca said.  
  
Maria didn't respond.  
  
***  
  
Snape was lying on his bed next door in the dark, staring at the empty ceiling blankly. There were so many things in his mind that he thought that his mind would explode. After what had happened today, his admiration for Maria went greater.  
  
Even though he kept on telling the others that he didn't like the idea of carry her, he felt that it was a pleasure to in his heart. He thought about the look on Maria's face when he carried her in his arms. She looked so innocent when she slept, like an angel. Moreover, her face was so close that he had to fight his temptation with all his might to prevent himself from kissing her.  
  
"Why Maria has to be a Muggle?" he asked the ceiling as if it had the answer.  
  
After a while, he growled in frustration, grabbed his pillow and threw it across the bedroom. 


	8. A Rainy Morning

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules.  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Note: Sorry for the long wait!  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 8: A Rainy Morning  
  
When the girls woke up the next morning, they were surprised to see the sky pouring heavily outside the hotel.  
  
Sue's handphone rang and she picked it up. It's Selene.  
  
"Hey Selene, are you coming today?"  
  
"No, I'm not," said the voice on the other end. "I afraid that the trip to the amusement park is cancelled."  
  
"What?!" yelled Sue in surprise.  
  
"Judging by the rain, I don't think it will stop until night falls. Anyway, the rides there are always under repair. So even if we manage to get there, we probably won't play much." added Selene.  
  
"Oh." said Sue.  
  
"Well, I got to go, see you tomorrow."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Sue switched off her phone and announced, "We are not going to anywhere today!"  
  
"What? Why?" exclaimed the girls.  
  
"It's raining so Selene will not be coming here today." said Sue and she flopped back onto her bed. "Oh well, since Selene is not here today, let's get Mandy and the rest of the girls here to play games!"  
  
"I'll go and get Mandy!" said Maria immediately; her hand was high up in the air.  
  
Without waiting for Sue to reply, she got up from her chair and went out of the room.  
  
"I bet she wants to go there simply because Severus Snape is there." said Sue finally to Inca.  
  
"I will get the rest of the girls." said Inca.  
  
***  
  
"Hey there, Maria, where are we going today?" asked Madam Hooch when she opened the door. Her hair was messy and she still had not changed from her night clothes.  
  
"Well, Selene is not coming today, because it is raining heavily outside......." began Maria.  
  
"Yeah, it is an awful weather, isn't it? And I thought that this place would never rain," said Madam Hooch and she pouted. "So we are going to stay in this hotel for the whole day?"  
  
"Yeah. So Sue wants you to go to her room......." said Maria slowly as she tried to get a glimpse of Snape in the room.  
  
Madam Hooch noticed her action and grinned.  
  
She turned around and yelled, "Hey Severus!"  
  
"What?" replied Snape's voice from the bathroom.  
  
Maria tried not to smile too happily at the sound of Snape's voice, in case Madam Hooch saw it and teased her about it.  
  
"Maria has not eaten her breakfast yet! Since you have just woken up, why don't you accompany her to the café downstairs?" suggested Madam Hooch.  
  
"But I have already......." said Maria in bewilderment when Madam Hooch looked at her. Then she realised what was Madam Hooch was trying to do.  
  
"Well, how about it?" called Madam Hooch to the bathroom as Maria began to blush.  
  
"Mandy, no! He might not like it!" said Maria frantically.  
  
".......okay." said Snape, his voice was hardly audible.  
  
"What?" asked Madam Hooch. "I can't hear you!"  
  
"I said okay!" yelled Snape impatiently.  
  
"Great!" said Madam Hooch, clapping her hands in delight. "Maria is already here, so don't let her wait!"  
  
A minute after she said that, Snape came out of the bathroom, wearing a black sweater and trousers.  
  
"Oh, same colour." whistled Madam Hooch as she looked at Maria's black top and black short skirt.  
  
Silence.  
  
"I think I should change." said Maria in embarrassment and turned around.  
  
"Oh no you don't!" said Madam Hooch suddenly and caught hold of Maria's shoulder.  
  
She steered her around. "I think you look great. Now you two just go, I will tell Minerva and Albus about today and go to Sue's room."  
  
Snape stared at Maria for a moment before he walked to her and said quietly, "Let's go."  
  
Maria blinked.  
  
"Well, are you coming or not?" asked Snape, trying not to sound too excited.  
  
Madam Hooch tried not to laugh at Snape's tone.  
  
"Um, yeah." said Maria and she followed Snape towards the lift.  
  
***  
  
At the café, Maria watched as Snape ate his breakfast.  
  
"Aren't you eating your pizza?" asked Snape when he caught her staring at him.  
  
"Err, yeah." said Maria nervously and took her small piece of Italian pizza. As she ate slowly (since she had already eaten two hours ago, she didn't want to eat too much), she continued to look at her crush, who was now drinking his coffee.  
  
Snape's eyes looked over the edge of the cup and met Maria's. They stared at each other for a while. His cheeks went pink and he put his cup down quickly.  
  
"Miss Maria, would you mind not to stare at me while I'm eating?" asked Snape with a slight note of impatience.  
  
"Am I?" asked Maria suddenly and she blinked. "Oh no, I guess I am. Well, um, I guess I will buy a newspaper to turn my attention away from you then." she said and got up before Snape could say anything.  
  
She came back with a copy of Singapore's version of The Straits Times and sat down. She took out the entertainment section and spread open it with her two hands, blocking Snape's view of her.  
  
"Good thing that the newspaper could cover my face," thought Maria, her face was as red as tomato.  
  
***  
  
Dumbledore sighed as he watched the rain outside in his and Minerva's room. "I guess we can't go out today."  
  
"You're right." said Minerva, her head was lying on her husband's chest. "That's what Mandy said; she said that Selene isn't coming so there won't be any outing."  
  
"Pity. But," Dumbledore shifted himself to get a comfortable position. "at least we get to lie in bed throughout the whole cold, rainy day."  
  
Minerva lifted her head. "That doesn't sound comfortable to me."  
  
"No, listen to me, Minerva. Look at this place, it's heaven! The weather is cold outside. We are in here, the heater is on, the bed is big and soft, there's nothing like staying in a warm bed during a cold weather."  
  
"I thought only kids and teenagers would think like that." said Minerva at last.  
  
"Well, I'm young at heart, you know."  
  
"Albus, staying in bed is not my style."  
  
"Oh come on, Minerva, aren't you the one who wants to stay in my bed until I have to drag you out of it for your class? And that was like what? During your seventh year?"  
  
Minerva stared at him. "That was years ago when I was 17. And you were 25."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And we are already 69 and 77."  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"So, so........" Minerva tried to think of an answer but she gave up. "Albus, I hate you when you caught me incapable of answering your question."  
  
"But you still love me, don't you?" asked Dumbledore and grinned.  
  
Silence.  
  
Minerva smiled slowly. "Yes," she whispered and kissed Dumbledore on the lips. "Oh I give up, let's just stay in bed for as long as you want."  
  
Then she snuggled into his arms and closed her eyes, sighing in content as she felt Dumbledore's arms around her, the soft bed under her and the thick, warm blankets covering her body.  
  
"Cosy, isn't it?" asked Dumbledore softly.  
  
"Hmm." said Minerva in agreement. 


	9. Oliver and Katie

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules.  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Chapter 9: Oliver and Katie  
  
The next day, the weather was fine but Selene called Sue in the morning and said that the group would not be going out until night falls.  
  
"Oh great, we are going to be bored again until night." said Carly when Sue passed Selene's message.  
  
"Well, come on, let's get Mandy and we'll go for breakfast." suggested Inca and the girls got up.  
  
***  
  
"Looking good today, Oliver." said Katie Bell cheerfully as Oliver Wood, the famous Puddlemere United Keeper, sat down across her at their table in the restaurant of Raffles the Plaza hotel.  
  
Oliver was wearing an ordinary T-shirt and Bermuda shorts.  
  
He grinned, "So do you." he said, looking at Katie's black shirt and blue miniskirt.  
  
After he said that, he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek.  
  
"I'm going to order something to eat at the counter, what do you want?" he asked.  
  
"Pancakes." said Katie simply.  
  
"One plate of pancakes, coming right up," sang Oliver. "Man, that's what I like about having a vacation in the Muggle world, nobody knows that I'm a famous Quidditch player."  
  
***  
  
Meanwhile, Madam Hooch and the group of girls (Snape, Albus and Minerva were still upstairs) came out of the lift to the first floor, where the hotel's restaurant was.  
  
"What are you girls eating today?" asked Madam Hooch.  
  
"We haven't decided yet." said Lindsey as they sat down at a table.  
  
"Oh well, I'm planning to...." started Madam Hooch when she saw a familiar young man with T-shirt and Bermuda shorts, standing at the counter.  
  
"Wood?" she muttered.  
  
"What? You want to eat wood?" asked Maria in bewilderment.  
  
"No, I mean......." said Madam Hooch and she watched the man holding two plates of food and went to the other end of the restaurant and to a table where a young woman was sitting. Her back was facing them so Madam Hooch couldn't see who it was.  
  
"Mandy? Mandy?" asked Sue.  
  
Madam Hooch looked back at them. "What?"  
  
"What are you planning to have?" asked Sue.  
  
"I think I will just get some toast." said Mandy absentmindedly.  
  
"Oh well, I will just go and check whether that young man is Wood later when I'm finished." she thought.  
  
***  
  
"Are the pancakes good?" asked Oliver as he watched Katie eating her pancakes.  
  
His bacon and eggs remained untouched.  
  
Katie smiled sweetly and picked a piece of pancake with her fork. "Open your mouth and you will know. Oliver, say ah......"  
  
"Ah...." said Oliver, showing his beautiful white teeth.  
  
Katie popped the pancake into his mouth and giggled. "You look so adorable!"  
  
Oliver chewed his food and swallowed. "Hm, it's a bit......" he began when he caught sight of someone at a table far away.  
  
He blinked.  
  
"Oliver? Oliver?" asked Katie.  
  
"Katie, do you think that is Madam Hooch over there?" asked Oliver and he pointed.  
  
Katie turned around. "Hm...... well, she does look like Madam Hooch..... Could it be....."  
  
Katie and Oliver looked at each other. "Nah."  
  
They returned to their breakfast.  
  
***  
  
Madam Hooch was drinking her coffee when the young couple at the table got up.  
  
"Oh shit," she thought. "And I thought I will finish my breakfast sooner than they do."  
  
She looked as the young man put his arm over his girlfriend's shoulders and they walked out of the restaurant together.  
  
"Nah, Oliver Wood couldn't have come here. Isn't he busy with his Puddlemere United practices?"  
  
***  
  
At the afternoon, the whole group went to the hotel's outdoor swimming pool. Madam Hooch rented a swimming suit and she jumped immediately into warm waters of the pool.  
  
"Severus, why don't you stay here and have a suntan? Minerva and I decide to have a massage near here." said Albus.  
  
"Suntan?" said Snape slowly.  
  
Maria was starting to listen to the conversation.  
  
"Doing a suntan is not my style." lied Snape simply.  
  
"Yeah right, you are the one who always do a suntan when you have a chance to. Funny that your skin colour doesn't change despite the amount of time you have spent under the sun." said Minerva.  
  
Snape threw up his arms. "Fine."  
  
"Great, see you later." said Albus then he and his wife left.  
  
"Hey, remember Selene's "The Hogwarts Sisters Strike Back"? Isn't there a part where Mandy doing a famous dive?" asked Sue to Maria.  
  
"Err......" said Maria absentmindedly as she watched Snape removing his shirt, preparing to have a good suntan.  
  
Sue frowned and folded her arms. "Ah, forget it."  
  
Maria didn't respond. Snape was already down on his deck chair, his sunglasses on.  
  
Sue rolled her eyes and grabbed Maria's hand. "Come on, love-sick girl, you won't get a word out of him if he is in that state."  
  
"Hey, wait a minute!" protested Maria.  
  
Sue ignored Maria's protest and practically had to drag her to the swimming pool to join the others.  
  
After Sue and Maria left, Snape was left alone in the sun. He grumbled Sue for taking Maria away silently for a while before he went quiet.  
  
Snape closed his eyes, unbelievably enjoying the sun, he heard familiar voices.  
  
"Oliver, do you think this guy is Professor Snape?" said a female voice. "I mean, he looks kind of like him. Even his skin colour is the same.  
  
"No way, look at his hair, there is a streak of sliver and green in it. Snape couldn't have dyed his hair even if you give him a thousand of Galleons." said a male voice.  
  
".....Yeah, I guess you are right. Snape couldn't be here doing a suntan, it's not like him to do that."  
  
"Snape is probably in Hogwarts, cursing Granger for getting full marks in her essay again." said the male voice and laughed.  
  
"Or he is accusing Harry and Ron for cheating in their Potion tests because they are doing well in them." giggled the female voice.  
  
"Come on, Katie, let's go back to our room." said the male voice.  
  
Snape figured out who the voices belonged to. They were Oliver Wood's and Katie Bell's. He yanked off the sunglasses and sat up. Oliver and Katie were already quite far away from him.  
  
"DAMN YOU GRYFFINDORS!" yelled Snape and he fell back on his chair, fuming.  
  
Oliver and Katie spun around.  
  
"Did you hear that?" asked Oliver in horror.  
  
***  
  
Night finally came and Selene arrived, wearing a long black jeans and long sleeve black shirt with a grey rose printed on it.  
  
"Whoa, Selene, what's the occasion?" asked Sandie.  
  
"Nothing. Um, Maria, I don't think you should wear a skirt today," said Selene, looking at Maria's short skirt. "Don't you have any pants?"  
  
"No, you said that this is a hot country, so I didn't bring any." said Maria.  
  
"Shit." Selene muttered.  
  
"What?"  
  
Selene didn't respond.  
  
***  
  
Selene brought the group out and to a restaurant called "Hot Stones". Although the dishes the people served there were delicious, they were very hot as well. There were square black boards with burning stones under them and raw meat was put on them and gave directly to the customers. In the end the customers had to eat their food out of hot, burning plates.  
  
Maria's beef arrived, sizzling on its black plate. Now Maria knew why Selene didn't want her to wear short skirt. She could see oil flying out of the dish as the meat was being cooked.  
  
"Maria, you can put the napkin on your lap if you want to." said Selene when her salmon arrived.  
  
"Here, take mine." said Sue quickly; she was wearing her dark white leather shirt and a long skirt, so she didn't need her paper napkin. She ignored the oil from her chicken landing on her sleeve, took her napkin and handed it to Maria.  
  
"Thanks." said Maria and she put it on her lap.  
  
"Very creative." said Albus simply as he watched his meat sizzling on his plate.  
  
"But very painful to some." said Lindsey as she ate her roast beef, giving a glance at Maria. She herself was wearing a black velvet jacket.  
  
"Yeah, the oil just keeps on flying out." said Carly, and she winced a little when another pin like drop of oil from her fish touched her hand.  
  
Snape watched as Maria ate her dinner, then at her meal. He himself was wearing a black jacket. He looked at his jacket, then at Maria.  
  
"Ouch!" said Maria when the drop of oil splat on her lap. "Looks like the napkin is useless, the oil still could sink through it." she said to Selene.  
  
Snape removed his jacket and presented it to Maria. "Here."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Use my jacket to cover your legs."  
  
Madam Hooch whistled.  
  
Maria blinked.  
  
The rest of the girls stared with their mouths open.  
  
"Come on, do you want it or not?" asked Snape impatiently.  
  
"Um, yes!" said Maria immediately and took the jacket. "Thank you."  
  
She took away the napkin and put the jacket on her legs.  
  
"But Severus, what about you?" asked Minerva.  
  
"This pain can't compare to the pain I have when the Dark Mark burns on my skin." said Snape and he went back to his dinner.  
  
Maria blushed and looked down at the jacket, couldn't believe that it was Severus Snape's jacket that was covering her legs, protecting them from the burning oil. 


	10. A Romantic Night

Disclaimer: You know already.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Pairings: AD/MM, Snape/Maria  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 10: A Romantic Night  
  
"....And over here is the statue of Merlion." said Selene as the group strolled into the Merlion Park after dinner. "The Merlion, portrayed by a lion's head and a body of a fish, is Singapore famous tourism symbol."  
  
"Cool." said Madam Hooch, looking at the 8-metre tall statue of the Merlion as it sprayed water out of its mouth into the huge Singapore River.  
  
"Does this place have another name, like couple's park or something?" asked Snape.  
  
"No. Why?" asked Selene.  
  
"I'm seeing couples everywhere with their arms around each other." said Snape in disgust.  
  
Sure enough, with the soft streetlights, the Merlion spraying water into the river, the good view of the Marina Bay (where the park was) and the cool weather, the atmosphere was romantic.  
  
"It's common." said Selene finally.  
  
"Well then, I think Minerva and I should join in." said Dumbledore and smiled as he put his arm around .  
  
"Really?" asked Selene, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "You go ahead."  
  
"Okay...." said Selene slowly. "We will be at the Caffe Di Mare if you need us." said she, pointing at a small, elegant coffee shop nearby.  
  
"Come on, you guys. Let's leave the lovebirds in peace." said Madam Hooch and grinned.  
  
The group went off and just when Maria was about to follow them, Snape caught hold of her hand firmly.  
  
"Miss Maria, can I have a word with you?" he asked seriously.  
  
"Hm, okay......"  
  
***  
  
Selene and the girls sat down at a table that was facing the Merlion and started ordering their drinks.  
  
"Hey, where's Maria?" asked Lindsey when she had ordered a cup of vanilla ice cream.  
  
"And Snape?" said Sue. "Where are they?"  
  
"Probably gone off somewhere." Selene muttered. "Ice Mocha, please." said she to the waiter.  
  
"Wherever they have gone to, I just hope that Snape would confess this time." thought Madam Hooch.  
  
***  
  
"All right, Professor, what do you want?" asked Maria calmly when they arrived at a remote place that overlooked the river.  
  
"Just want to ask you....." started Snape but he stopped there.  
  
"What?" asked Maria.  
  
"Now how am I going to put it......" Snape muttered to himself.  
  
Maria started to look impatient.  
  
"Okay, I'll come straight to the point. Are you sure you are a pure Muggle?" asked Snape quickly.  
  
Maria blinked. "Um, yeah. Of course I am sure."  
  
Snape looked disappointed, which was very rare.  
  
So did Maria. "Is that all you want to ask?"  
  
Snape didn't respond.  
  
Maria frowned deeply. "In that case, I'm leaving."  
  
She turned around and started walking.  
  
"Hold on, Maria!" called Snape sharply.  
  
Maria stopped in her tracks. Slowly, she turned her head. "What did you call me?"  
  
"Maria." said Snape clearly but slowly. His cheeks went pink.  
  
Maria turned her whole body around.  
  
"If I don't get things clear today, I will go mad. Maria, you have taken my breath away." said Snape quietly.  
  
Maria's mouth dropped open. "What?"  
  
"I said you are so beautiful that I have fallen completely in love with you." said Snape impatiently.  
  
Maria blushed slightly. Snape reached out and took Maria's hand. Maria looked at his hand, couldn't believe that this was happening.  
  
"Although I'm trying hard not to have any feelings for you because you are not a witch, not even a Muggle-born but I fail, for countless time. You are just, I don't know, too good, I guess."  
  
Maria just listened.  
  
Snape looked down to the hard stone floor. "Please forgive me if I have offended you for falling in love with you. If you speak up now, I will leave you in peace."  
  
Silence.  
  
Snape looked up, wondering why Maria was so quiet. Maria just stood there with her mouth remained open, as still as the Merlion.  
  
"Miss Maria?" asked Snape timidly.  
  
Maria held up her hand suddenly. "Don't call me Miss Maria."  
  
Snape blinked.  
  
Maria leaned forward; her face was just inches away from Snape's. "Call me Maria whenever you want. But can I call you Severus?"  
  
Snape nodded silently.  
  
"I'm not going to be mad at you for falling in love with me. Instead I want to thank you."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Like you, I'm afraid for offending someone for having feelings for him."  
  
"And that person is......." said Snape slowly.  
  
Maria smiled. "His name is Severus Snape, does that ring a bell?"  
  
Snape raised his eyebrows. "That's my....."  
  
But Maria, who covered his lips with hers, cut off his sentence. Snape closed his eyes and kissed her back tenderly.  
  
***  
  
"Do you think we should go back now?" asked Carly after she had drunk the last drop of her green tea from a crystalline teacup.  
  
Selene looked at her watch. 10.30pm. "Yeah, let's go. I think the shop is closing."  
  
The girls came out of the shop and searched for Dumbledore and Minerva.  
  
"There they are." said Inca, pointing at a direction.  
  
"Aww." said the girls and grinned at the sight.  
  
Minerva had her head rested on her husband's shoulder; Dumbledore had his arm around her waist as they looked out to the river and enjoyed the wind blowing gently at their faces.  
  
"Albus?" called Selene when they arrived. "Minerva?"  
  
Dumbledore turned around slowly and putted his finger to his lips. "Minerva is asleep."  
  
"Sorry." whispered Selene. "Where are Professor Snape and Maria?"  
  
"I don't know." whispered Dumbledore back.  
  
Sue patted Selene's shoulder. "There they are." she said quietly.  
  
Selene looked up, and watched Snape and Maria walking towards them.  
  
"Finished your drinks already?" asked Snape.  
  
"Yeah." said Selene. "Let's go. Albus?"  
  
Dumbledore nodded and gently carried Minerva up in his arms.  
  
As the group turned their backs at Snape and Maria, they smiled at each other and held hands.  
  
***  
  
Back at the hotel, Sue and Maria were in their room. Inca was having a bath. Maria was lying on her bed, looking very dreamy. Sue didn't notice, because she was listening to a Julie Andrews' CD.  
  
"Isn't Julie great?" asked Sue as she listened "Show Me".  
  
Maria didn't respond.  
  
"Maria?"  
  
Maria just sighed happily.  
  
"Wonder what happened." Sue muttered as she listened to the next song "If Love Were All".  
  
***  
  
"Man, I'm beat." said Madam Hooch after she had taken her bath.  
  
As she dried her hair, she went to the window and sighed at the scenery. "It's a pity that we are going home the day after tomorrow. Wish that we could stay here forever."  
  
"Don't remind me." growled Snape.  
  
To him, going home meant leaving Maria.  
  
"If only I confess earlier." he thought miserably. He sighed sadly, punched his pillow and buried his face in it.  
  
"What happened to you?" asked Madam Hooch in bewilderment.  
  
"Don't ask." said Snape without filling his face from the pillow. 


	11. The Last Day

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules.  
  
Note 2: The Knight Bus thing is real, pity that I didn't get to ride it.  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Jade- Maria is over 20 years-old.  
  
Chapter 12: The Last Day  
  
Selene had no more places to take the group to, so they decided to stay in the hotel. Some of the girls decided to sleep in. Mandy decided to go to the hotel's tennis court, wearing shorts and a sleeveless shirt and taking Carly with her. Dumbledore went to the swimming pool again, dragging Minerva with him.  
  
Maria was sleeping in her bed when someone rang the doorbell. She made a noise and refused to get up.  
  
"Will somebody get the door?" snapped Sue in irritation when the ringing didn't stop.  
  
"Get Inca to open it." said Maria sleepily.  
  
"Inca!" called Sue.  
  
No response.  
  
The ringing continued.  
  
"Looks like Inca is out." thought Sue.  
  
The bell continued to ring.  
  
"MARIA, GET THE DOOR!" yelled Sue from her own bed, feeling mean for a moment.  
  
Maria got up, flinging her blanket aside and marched straight to the door.  
  
"Ha." thought Sue.  
  
Maria yawned and opened the door.  
  
Snape was standing outside with black shirt and jeans on.  
  
Maria gasped and slammed the door shut.  
  
"Who is it at the door?" asked Sue.  
  
Maria didn't answer, she rushed to the bathroom, then sounds of her washing up were heard. A minute later, she came out, looking refreshed.  
  
Sue sat up, looking at Maria curiously as she opened the door. Snape was still at the door.  
  
"Hi." said Maria sweetly.  
  
"Is that a Muggle way of greeting?" asked Snape in his usual slow tone.  
  
Maria giggled.  
  
Sue suddenly sat up, feeling very wide awake. She listened to the conversation carefully.  
  
"So what's up?" she heard Maria asking.  
  
"Nothing, just wondering whether you would like to accompany me to go sightseeing." said Snape.  
  
"Certainly. Just wait for a minute." said Maria, closing the door.  
  
She closed the door, went past Sue as if she was invisible, then to her bag. She took out fresh clothes and went to the bathroom. A minute later, she came out, wearing shorts and white T-shirt.  
  
"Bye, Sue! I won't be back for a long time!" sang Maria and she went out before Sue said anything.  
  
Sue sat at her place for a while before she said, "Oh well, show's over."  
  
And she fell back to her lying position, deciding to go back to sleep.  
  
Mandy and Carly rented the tennis racket from the tennis equipment renting shop and was on their way to the court when someone bumped into them and they fell to the floor.  
  
"Ouch!"  
  
"Oops!" they heard a man exclaimed in a Scottish accent. "I'm so sorry! I didn't see where I am going.....Madam Hooch?! What in the Merlin's name are you doing here?"  
  
Madam Hooch looked up and gaped. Oliver Wood and Katie Bell were staring at her with their mouths dropped open. Both of them were wearing shorts, T- shirts and tennis shoes.  
  
"Me? What about you two? Why are you here in Singapore?" asked Madam Hooch.  
  
"Katie and I are on vacation." said Oliver as he helped Madam Hooch up and Katie helped Carly.  
  
"Me too. And so are Professor Snape, Minerva and Albus." said Madam Hooch and brushed the dust off her shorts.  
  
"So we are right! We thought that we saw you and heard Professor Snape, but we didn't know that it is you people....." said Oliver and grinned.  
  
"I saw you and Katie too the day before yesterday." said Madam Hooch. "And oh yeah, this is Carly....... we met her and her group of friends at the airport and one of them is kind enough to be our tour guide."  
  
"Hello." said Oliver and Katie cheerfully.  
  
"Um......hi." stammered Carly and blushed.  
  
"Why are you so shy?" asked Madam Hooch in bewilderment. "It's just Oliver Wood and Katie Bell."  
  
Carly didn't say anything. The sight of Oliver Wood had made her tongue- tied.  
  
"Oh well, she's usually very talkative." said Madam Hooch to Oliver. "Anyway, are you two playing tennis as well?"  
  
"You bet." said Oliver cheerfully.  
  
"Hey, how about the two of you play against the both of us?" asked Madam Hooch.  
  
"Sure." said Oliver and Katie in unison.  
  
"Play tennis with Madam Hooch, Oliver Wood and Katie Bell, I must be dreaming." thought Carly dreamily.  
  
Maria and Snape were walking (and holding hands) outside a building when they noticed a lot of people forming a long queue at its exterior.  
  
"What are they doing?" asked Maria.  
  
Snape just shrugged.  
  
"Let's go and take a look!" said Maria and before Snape could protest, she dragged him to the front of the line.  
  
They reached the front of the line and saw a sign above a counter that said, "Get Your Ticket to the Knight Bus Here"  
  
"Knight Bus?!" exclaimed Maria and Snape in surprise.  
  
"Hurry up, ladies and gentlemen! If you want to ride the same bus as Harry Potter does, please grab a ticket now!" cried the man at the counter.  
  
"What in the Merlin's name is going on........" Snape muttered. "I thought the Knight Bus is invisible to Muggles......"  
  
"I'm calling Selene, maybe she knows what's going on." said Maria and took out her handphone.  
  
"Knight Bus?" asked Selene blankly. She was at home, lying on her bed when Maria called.  
  
"Yeah, you know, that triple-decker purple bus in Harry Potter." said Maria anxiously.  
  
"Oh that! Nah, that Knight Bus is a fake. It is created by the Warner Brothers Company. Actually it is just a double-decker bus, just that it was designed to look like a triple-decker. It will be in service from 28 of May to 9th of June, 11am to 8pm. If there is no traffic jam, the ride will take about 1/2 hour. It is totally free-of-charge."  
  
"Free? Wow!"  
  
"If you want to get a ticket, you better get it soon." said Selene seriously.  
  
"I will, bye Selene, and bye." said Maria and hang up. "Well, Severus, let's go and have a ride!"  
  
"No thanks, I have enough with the real Knight Bus." said Snape, frowning.  
  
Maria pouted. "Please?"  
  
Snape didn't respond.  
  
"Pretty please?"  
  
Snape stared at her with no emotion on his face.  
  
Maria battled her eyelashes at him.  
  
Snape sighed.  
  
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for witches, wizards and specially, Muggles. Just step on board and we will take you around Singapore. My name is Herbert, and I will be your conductor today." said a young man in a purple uniform, standing outside a tall, purple bus.  
  
"Please give me your ticket and step on board, the Knight Bus will be off in a few minutes." said Herbert.  
  
"Come on!" said Maria and dragged Snape to follow the line of people who were boarding the bus.  
  
When they boarded, Maria and Snape stared in awe at the bus.  
  
"These Muggles could actually get this bus to look exactly like the real one." said Snape finally, looking at the mismatched chairs and the narrow wooden staircase that led upstairs.  
  
"Let's sit down." said Maria happily and sat down on a chair that was wide enough for two people.  
  
Snape sat down beside her and Herbert jumped on board. "All right, are we all ready for the ride?!"  
  
"Yeah!" cried the passengers.  
  
Snape just grunted.  
  
"Okay, take her away! Chris!" shouted Herbert to the driver.  
  
The bus moved slowly at the first, but when it reached the highway, it zoomed on the road as fast as it could go.  
  
The whole day passed by quickly. Maria and Snape came back to the hotel in the evening, tired after the bus ride and sightseeing.  
  
"Hungry, Maria?" asked Snape when they arrived to their floor.  
  
"Hm-mm."  
  
"I'll take that as a yes. How about having dinner later?"  
  
Maria suddenly didn't feel tired anymore. "Oh yes! 8 o'clock?"  
  
"8 o'clock is fine." said Snape in his usual slow voice.  
  
"Great, see you later!" said Maria happily and went to her room.  
  
Snape smiled slightly at her enthusiasm, and went to his room. When he went in, he found out that Madam Hooch was still not back.  
  
"Where did she go......" he muttered.  
  
Shrugging, he went to the bathroom for a bath. Just after he closed the bathroom door and took off his clothes, he found out that there was no soap.  
  
"Great, now I have to borrow from someone else!" grumbled Snape and he snatched his clothes to put them back on.  
  
He yanked open the main door and went out to Dumbledore's room to borrow a bottle of soap.  
  
Once he got out, he bumped right into Madam Hooch.  
  
"Hey!"  
  
"Ouch!"  
  
"Madeline Hooch, watch where you are going, will you?" snapped Snape.  
  
"Okay, okay....."  
  
"Urgh, what have you been doing?" asked Snape in disgust when he smelt sweat.  
  
"Playing tennis with Carly. She's just gone back to her room. Boy, I need a bath."  
  
"There's no soap, we better borrow from Albus." said Snape.  
  
"We?" asked Madam Hooch blankly.  
  
"Hey, I need a bath too, you know." said Snape quickly.  
  
"Fine, whatever, now let's go to Albus and Minerva's room, hopefully they are in." said Madam Hooch and they went to Dumbledore's room.  
  
Snape put his hand onto the doorknob immediately.  
  
"Hey, don't you think we need to ring the doorbell?" asked Madam Hooch.  
  
Snape snorted. "Like I care."  
  
He opened the door and went straight in with Madam Hooch. "Albus, our room has no......." He went silent.  
  
"Oops." said Madam Hooch slowly when she saw what she and Snape had bumped into.  
  
The bathroom door was open, Minerva and Dumbledore were in the tub, sitting side by side and having a bubble bath. There were so much of bubbles that their bodies were invisible under them.  
  
Minerva gave a short scream and lowered herself into the water with a loud splash, leaving her head to be visible. Her face was as red as an apple. Dumbledore just looked surprised.  
  
Silence.  
  
"Is there anything you want?" asked Dumbledore finally.  
  
"Hm, yeah......" said Snape slowly, his cheeks turning slightly pink. "Our bathroom has run out of soap, do you mind if we borrow a bottle from here?"  
  
"Sure." said Dumbledore and reached over the shelf beside the tub. He picked up a small bottle of soap and passed it over to the Potions master.  
  
Minerva was still too embarrassed to say anything.  
  
"Thanks." said Snape quickly and dashed out of the door.  
  
"Just pretend that we didn't see anything, okay?" said Madam Hooch and followed Snape. When she was about to close the door, she looked at the couple and grinned, "Remember to lock the door next time. Bye!"  
  
Silence again.  
  
"Albus, how many times must I tell you to lock the door?" asked Minerva darkly.  
  
"Erm......" said Dumbledore slowly.  
  
"Oh forget it!" snapped Minerva and got out of the tub.  
  
She snatched the towel from the sliver bar and wrapped herself with it.  
  
"Minerva Darling......."  
  
"Don't 'Darling' me, and don't come looking for me for the next few hours!" said Minerva angrily and stormed out of the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.  
  
A few minutes later, Dumbledore heard the front door being opened and closed with a loud bang.  
  
"My memory is getting worse." Dumbledore muttered and sighed.  
  
He took one of the glasses of lemonade that he and Minerva left on the shelf and drank it in one go.  
  
Once Snape and Madam Hooch got back to their rooms, Madam Hooch rushed into the bathroom.  
  
"Hey!" yelled Snape in protest.  
  
"Too late!" said Madam Hooch in the bathroom and laughed as she turned the shower on and started singing.  
  
"So Maria just went out with Snape this morning......yes, Snape, the potions master! Can you believe it? I wonder what they did yesterday....." said Sue at the phone to someone.  
  
Maria hummed happily as she picked out her clothes for the evening.  
  
"And now she is humming happily." reported Sue.  
  
"Today is so cool, Sue! I get to ride the Knight Bus!" said Maria.  
  
"Knight Bus?! What Knight Bus?" asked Sue. "Selene, you didn't tell us that Singapore has its own Knight Bus!"  
  
Okay, so she was talking to Selene.  
  
"I thought you guys were with her at that time!" said Selene from the other end, trying to defend herself. "Err......I got to go and have my dinner, bye!"  
  
"Hey, wait a minute!" cried Sue. "You can't hang up without explaining about the Knight Bus thing!"  
  
Too late, Selene had hung up.  
  
"Sheesh. Maria, what's going on with the Knight Bus thing?" asked Sue as she put her phone aside.  
  
"Can't say now, I need to get ready for dinner with Severus." said Maria before she went to the bathroom when someone rang the doorbell.  
  
"Coming!" called Sue and she went to get the door.  
  
Minerva was standing outside, her hair was down and wet. She was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans. She looked as if the Slytherins had won the Quidditch Cup again.  
  
"Minerva, are you okay?" asked Sue slowly.  
  
"No, I'm not." snapped Minerva. "Mind if I come in?"  
  
"Of course not, come in."  
  
Minerva came into the room while Sue closed the door. "What happened? Where's Albus?"  
  
"Don't ask me about him! He is so.......argh!" Minerva sat down on the chair.  
  
"Okay, okay....."  
  
A few seconds later, Minerva stood up. "I can't stand being in here! Sue, why don't you and the rest of the girls come shopping with me?"  
  
"We're glad to but I think Maria have plans already."  
  
"She has? Oh well, I guess that leaves the 7 of us. I'm going to ask Mandy to come along."  
  
"All right! I'm going to get the rest of the girls! Wait here, Minerva!" said Sue and she dashed out of the room.  
  
Minerva, Madam Hooch and the girls spent hours shopping at the nearby shopping malls. By the time they were done, it was already 10pm. All of them bought so many things that they had probably used up all their money for the vacation. Minerva had the best time of her life spending her money on Muggle clothes and books.  
  
She waved goodnight to the girls and Madam Hooch before she went to her own room. Once she opened the door and saw Dumbledore sitting on the bed, surfing channels on the television idly, her dark mood returned.  
  
Minerva dumped all her shopping bags on the side of the bed, grabbed her nightdress from the chair and went to change.  
  
Dumbledore turned slowly to bathroom, wondering whether Minerva was mad at him. When Minerva flung open the door, he turned quickly back to the television. Minerva rummaged through the shopping bags and took out a brand- new novel. She then sat down at the edge of the bed and started reading.  
  
"Minerva?" asked Dumbledore timidly.  
  
No response.  
  
"Minerva, speak to me, please."  
  
Minerva continued to read.  
  
Dumbledore sighed and switched off the television. He got up and pulled the curtains shut. Then he got into bed.  
  
"Minerva, I don't care if you are listening or not, I'm just wanted to say that I'm sorry."  
  
Minerva flipped a page.  
  
Dumbledore turned off his side of the bedside lamp and lowered himself to a lying position. A few minutes later, Minerva put down her book, switched off the lamp and lay down.  
  
"Albus?"  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"I'm sorry too. I'm being ridiculous, am I?"  
  
Dumbledore smiled. "No." He reached over and put his hand on Minerva's shoulder. "You just want us to have some privacy. I'll lock the door from now on. I promise."  
  
"Like now?" asked Minerva, smiling.  
  
Dumbledore waved his hand and the sound of door being locked was heard. "Satisfied?"  
  
"Very." said Minerva and she shifted closer to his body.  
  
Dumbledore smiled again, put his arms around Minerva and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Minerva."  
  
Minerva's smile widened. "I love you too." she whispered. 


	12. Goodbye

Disclaimer: You know the basic; the girls belong to themselves, and Selene is myself, Singapore and its places belong to themselves, of course.  
  
To flamers: I don't take kindly to flames so get out of here, if you know what's good for you.  
  
Note: My fic, my rules.  
  
Pairings: Albus/Minerva, Snape/Maria  
  
Thank you for your reviews!  
  
Chapter 12: Goodbye  
  
"Well, I'm going to miss all of you." said Selene quietly to Snape, Madam Hooch, Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore the next day at Changi Airport. They were going to return to Hogwarts.  
  
"Us too." said Maria and the girls nodded. She was looking at Snape as she spoke.  
  
"Aw, come on, girls." said Madam Hooch, outstretching her arms and the younger girls went into it.  
  
As they hugged, Snape held Maria's hand. "Maria, may I have a word with you?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
They walked to a private area of the airport. Once they did, Snape pulled Maria into a kiss. Maria returned the kiss, slowly and passionately. When they came up for air, Maria backed away slightly, wiping the tears away from her eyes. "I'm going to miss you, really."  
  
Snape didn't say anything. Instead he pulled her towards him again for a hug. Maria stayed in his arms for quite a while before he let go.  
  
Maria still had tears on her face. Sighing, Snape searched his pockets for something and finally took out a packet of tissues. He removed one and handed it to Maria. She took it immediately and wiped it on her face.  
  
"I don't want you to go." she muttered.  
  
Snape stared at her. Then he took off his pendant and took her hand.  
  
He placed the pendant on her palm and closed her fingers. He patted it. "I promise I'll come for this. Put it on."  
  
Maria smiled slightly and put the pendant on. She stared admiringly at the beautiful emeralds when Madam Hooch shouted, "Severus! Time to go!"  
  
Maria's small smile faded quickly. Snape put his arm around her shoulders to comfort her and they walked together to join the others.  
  
"I'm going to miss you, Miss Maria." said Professor McGonagall when they arrived.  
  
Maria didn't say anything. Dumbledore handed out magical passes to his colleagues which allowed them to take a special plane beck to the magical world itself. Snape took his, still no letting go of Maria.  
  
"Severus." said Dumbledore gently.  
  
Snape understood what he meant, his tone clearly stood for: "We have to go so let go of Maria".  
  
Snape had no choice but to let go of Maria.  
  
"Well, we really must go now." said Dumbledore to the girls.  
  
Selene just nodded and shoved her hands into her pockets. The rest said nothing. Dumbledore and the others turned and walked towards Gate 1 ½. They looked back near the wall between Gate 1 and Gate 2 and waved goodbye.  
  
The girls except Maria, who was looking at Snape, waved back. Snape stared back, until Dumbledore put his hand on his shoulder and he unwillingly followed the rest of Hogwarts staff through the wall.  
  
They were gone, back to their world.  
  
Silence.  
  
"I think we better go too." said Selene quietly.

* * *

An hour later, Selene and her friends were shopping on the streets, trying to get their minds off their magical friends' departure.  
  
Carly was admiring a mannequin in a kimono in a shop window when Sandie grabbed her arm. "What?"  
  
"Look!" said Sandie, pointing at a giant screen that a tall building had pasted on itself.  
  
Normally, that giant screen showed television commercials. But today it showed.....  
  
"It's 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' trailer!" said Lindsey, jumping up and down.  
  
"Cool!" said Inca as the screen showed a Dementor standing outside Harry and his friends' train compartment.  
  
Then it showed the choir in the Great Hall, the Knight Bus, and Daniel Radcliffe turning his head sharply in horror.  
  
"It's Daniel!" said Selene, looking rather excited.  
  
Then it showed Tom Felton blowing a paper crane out of his hands.  
  
"Tom looked so cool....." said Carly dreamily.  
  
"Maria and I prefer Alan Rickman. He's good at playing Snape." said Sue and turned to Maria. "Right, Maria?"  
  
Maria just stared at the screen as the trailer continued to show Alan Rickman coming out of the closet.  
  
"Maria?"  
  
"Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban prison." said the trailer as it showed the trio standing behind Rickman. "Swear to me that you won't go looking for Black......."  
  
"Goodbye." said Maria quietly to the screen, sniffed and wiped her cheek with her hand.  
  
Sue blinked. "Oh my God, you're crying! Will someone get a tissue for Maria?"  
  
In the end, none of the girls seemed to notice that the trailer was over as they fussed over Maria.

* * *

3 days later.....  
  
Selene sighed and looked at her friends at the Changi Airport. "I was looking forward to watch Harry Potter in the theatre with you girls."  
  
The girls smiled back while Sandie ruffled Selene's fringe (which was quite long). "Oh come on, at least we could still discuss about it in the Yahoo group."  
  
"I guess." Selene muttered.  
  
"Thanks for giving us a good time." said Carly cheerfully while Inca nodded.  
  
"Last call for the 2pm flight from Singapore to Germany." said the PA system.  
  
"Ah!" said Sue in frustration. "Stupid PA system. Oh well, guess Inca and I have to go now."  
  
Selene pouted.  
  
"Look kiddo, I'll write to you when we got back. Okay?" asked Sue.  
  
Selene nodded but she didn't smile. Sue hugged Maria goodbye, gave her goodbyes to the other girls and they went to Departure Gate 1.  
  
After Sue and Inca left, they waited for an hour before Lindsey's flight to Scotland was announced. Lindsey left after a lot of goodbyes and hugs from the remaining girls.  
  
The day went by and the girls left one by one. Soon, Maria was the only one left with Selene.  
  
"Second last call for 5pm flight from Singapore to USA." announced the PA system.  
  
Selene folded her arms. "Guess that we have to say goodbye now."  
  
Maria smiled at her brightly and held her hand. "Thank you for inviting me here."  
  
Selene just smiled back.  
  
"I'm really grateful for it. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have met Severus and get to know him better."  
  
Selene didn't say anything but she had a slight blush on her cheeks.  
  
"Hope to see your posts in the Yahoo group again next time." said Maria.  
  
"Um, yeah." said Selene finally.  
  
"Last call for 5pm flight from Singapore to USA."  
  
Maria and Selene hugged each other quickly and Maria picked up her suitcase. She stopped in front of Gate 1, turned around, smiled again and waved.  
  
Selene waved back and watched as Maria walked through the gate until she was out of sight.  
  
She stood there for quite while before she let out a huge sigh, put her hands in her pockets, turned around and left the airport with her head down.

* * *

15 days later....  
  
Selene was checking her e-mail when she saw an e-mail from an unfamiliar address: Hermione at yahoo.com. The subject was: Vacation  
  
Curiously, Selene clicked on it and a letter was revealed. It said:  
  
_Dear Selene,  
  
Don't ask how I know this e-mail thing, I just get Miss Granger to type it on my behalf. Thank you again for being our tour-guide in Singapore. All of us have a great time. We are fine here. Snape doesn't look so good through, he is found moping around the castle. I wondered why. He has been like this since we got back.  
  
Anyway, I was wondering whether you can write a fanfiction on our vacation? I have heard so many of the fanfictions written by you girls but there isn't one based on real events. So I thought that it will be interesting to have one based on a true story.  
  
How about it? If you agrees, I can tell you all of the stuff that I have seen and do. The rest have agreed to it, although Snape and Minerva are a bit unwilling to go along with the rest.  
  
If you want to write it, please reply through this e-mail.  
  
Hope to hear you soon.  
  
Mandy.  
_  
Selene mused over the letter and smiled. She replied:  
  
_Hi Mandy,  
  
Yes, I will do it. I will send e-mails to the rest of the girls to get them to agree to it.  
  
See ya,  
Selene_  
  
Then she sent similar e-mails to her friends.  
  
_Hi,  
  
Mandy had sent me an e-mail, asking me to write a fanfic on our vacation. I have agreed, so how about giving me some information about what you have done in the vacation?  
  
Selene_  
  
In the next few days, Selene received e-mails from the girls, agreeing to provide information on the vacation. Madam Hooch began to send e-mails through Hermione as well.  
  
Within a few days, Selene began to write the story.

* * *

Days later, Selene was checking her e-mail again when she saw another e-mail from Hermione at yahoo.com. The subject was entitled: Maria's address.  
  
She opened the e-mail, read it through and gasped. She read it again clearly to ensure that she wasn't dreaming, then she sent an e-mail to Sue, writing:  
  
_Sue,  
  
Give me Maria's home address as soon as possible. There's a certain person with the initials S.S who wants it.  
  
Selene  
_

* * *

Maria sighed at the first chapter that Selene had wrote, she still remembered the first time when she saw Severus Snape, so clear as if it happened only yesterday.  
  
She sighed again, turned off her computer and went to her bed. She flopped on her bed and closed her eyes.  
  
"Didn't Severus promise that he will look for me? Where the hell is he? Has he forgotten about me already?" she thought miserably.  
  
She opened her eyes and fidgeted with the pendant that Snape gave her slowly. The doorbell downstairs started to ring and someone went to answer it.  
  
"Maria!" called her mother downstairs.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You have a visitor!"  
  
Maria unwillingly got up from her bed, got out of it and dragged herself out of the door. She walked down the stairs with her head down and her hair untied, looking tired and sad.  
  
"Really, Maria, sometimes I think I will never understand your odd ways of greeting me." said someone in a slow, deep voice.  
  
Wait a minute......  
  
Maria looked up and her mouth dropped open at her visitor.  
  
Severus Snape was outside the door with his streak of green and sliver hair. He was wearing his black shirt, jacket, jeans and boots. He smiled slightly at Maria's reaction.  
  
Maria smiled slowly. Then she threw her head back and rearranged her hair with her hands.  
  
Snape was now grinning at her actions. Maria went down the stairs as soon as possible, carefully not to trip over. She ran to the door and right into Snape's arms happily. Then they released each other a little for a kiss that they had missed for a long time.  
  
Severus Snape had kept his promise after all.  
  
The End 


End file.
